


Blood Contract

by Rukazaya



Category: Durarara!!
Genre: Alternate Universe - Vampire, Angst, Angst and Fluff and Smut, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Blood, Blood Drinking, Death, Demon Blood, Explicit Sexual Content, Fantasy, Fluff and Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Implied Sexual Content, M/M, Magic, Rape/Non-con Elements, Rough Sex, Sex torture, Sexual Harassment, Sexual Violence, Smut, Unresolved Sexual Tension, Vampires, Violence, Whipping, i've given you guys plenty of warnings I hope...
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-06-03
Updated: 2017-11-29
Packaged: 2017-12-13 21:44:51
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 26
Words: 133,558
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/829206
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rukazaya/pseuds/Rukazaya
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Halloween Special! AU Story of Vampire Izaya and Priest/Vampire Hunter Shizuo! In which Shizuo accidentally makes a blood contract, binding the vampire to him as his servant. But Izaya refuses to be tamed that easily.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Title:**  Blood Contract  
 **Rating:**  M  
 **Pairing:** Shizuo x Izaya  
 **Prompt : HALLOWEEN SPECIAL. Vampire Izaya and Priest Shizuo story! This is an AU story!**

 **Author's Note:**  Technically this is AU. Please consider this taking place several hundred years back. It also doesn't quite take place in Japan (Probably… lol) but if I changed their names to non-Japanese and took out the entire –san, -chan, the entire fanfic would be just an original story… I also understand that their names should be a saint's name etc… but again, I'm not going to change that due to fanfic sake.

so please understand why I had kept the Japanese names and the honorifics even if this doesn't really take place in Japan.

Thank you.

 **Disclaimer:** I own none of these characters!

_THIS STORY CONTAINS MALExMALE RELATIONSHIPS. You have been warned._

* * *

**-Prologue-**

Vampires dominated his nightmares.

The images were hauntingly crystal clear as if it happened yesterday rather than fifteen years ago. For years, as a child, Shizuo would wake up drenched in sweat and crying as Brother Tom rushed over to hug him and tell him that it was alright- that he is safe now. And that no vampires would come for him that night; not inside the church…

…for the vampire that chased him in his dreams was actually caught and locked up deep underground. Shizuo Heiwajima knew this as a child… yet he still dreamed for years of that day when his parents were killed before his eyes and the vampire's claws squeezed his tiny neck, choking him as he sank his teeth in…

In order to defeat the vampire that haunted his dreams, and despite Brother Tom's disapproval, Shizuo registered to study in the Order of the Nebula. Or, to be more specific, in the branch for becoming a vampire hunter.

And thus our story begins…

* * *

**-Chapter 1-**

"Brother Shizuo!" The older man with an unshaven face rushed over, his dirty brown trench coat blown back with the wind. The blond man he had called after pretended not to hear him as he continued up the quiet church aisle, the stained glass windows reflecting soft rays of colorful light upon the otherwise dull wooden benches. The stomps of his boots are loud in the empty hall and his tall figure along with his twice as large cross on his back made the vampire hunter stand out too easily to be ignored.

"Brother Shizuo! Your report!" The man finally caught up to the blond, grabbing him by the sleeve. The blond man named Heiwajima Shizuo turned around finally, glaring down at the man in his trench coat.

"Yes? Brother?"

Brother Shuji Niekawa flinched, stiffening up at the icy cold glare from those sharp brown eyes. But he was a workaholic. And there was work to be done.

"Y-your report! You didn't file it correctly."

A bunch of papers were shoved into the tall blond young man's face. He sighed, grumbling that he was no good at this as he sat down on the closest bench and started scribbling his signature on them.

"I thought Father Tom said he would take care of this for me." Shizuo Heiwajima protested, as he scratched off whatever he thought looked right. He had just come back from his travels and his long coat was covered in mud and dirty. Brother Niekawa had noted them and frowned, though he did not speak his opinions out loud.

"Father Tom is a busy man. You should be doing your own work."

Shizuo groaned as he scratched his head, trying to make sense of his work quickly so he could retire to his quarters. He noticed that his sleeves were stained in blood and he sighed inwardly. He hated doing his laundry, not that he was any good in domestic things. He just wanted to get this over with and…

"Speaking of which, Brother Kasuka returned home."

"Oh yeah?" Shizuo brightened at those words. Kasuka Heiwajima was his blood brother. Though technically, the entire church was his family, still Shizuo was secretly biased and looked up to his younger brother. Besides him, only Father Tom and Sister Vorona had managed to earn Shizuo's trust within this church….

"Yes. And his accursed vampire too." Brother Niekawa tsked in disapproval. "She's a succubus whore. Spawn of the devil itself. Such a vile creature shouldn't step foot on our holy grounds but…"

Brother Niekawa paused at the sound of something snapping. The feather quill pen Shizuo had borrowed from Brother Niekawa broke in half and the blond's forehead had several blood veins popping up in places.

Seeing the red face should have been a clue for the unfortunate monk but Brother Niekawa wasn't well known for being sharp. Or rather, he didn't quite understand when to 'fear,' since he believed he was protected by God.

"Angry? Seriously, my dear Brother. She is a slut. A vampire like her should have never… whooOOooaaAAaa!"

Suddenly Brother Niekawa couldn't feel the ground under him as he was soon lifted up high and he found himself facing a beast barely able to contain his anger within his body.

"Don't. Talk about Ruri-chan. That way. Or. My Brother. Kasuka."

Shizuo huffed. The anger boiled inside him, wanting to be released. He had to speak in short spurts, barely connecting the words into a cohesive sentence. Because right now his vision was swimming red as his eyes became bloodshot with sheer fury.

" _Ruri-chan?_  What's this? You actually call the vampire with endearing names? Brother Shizuo, she's a  _Vampire!_  A cursed being! She should have been killed the moment… Ah… Ah… I see it now. You're jealous."

Shizuo froze at those words, his lips trembling. Did he say…

"You're jealous that your own blood brother had successfully made a blood contract with a vampire. Ahaha… I see. So you want one too? Your own vampire slave? You know, hundreds of priests have tried but failed for years but you and your brother… were the only ones. Except, in actuality, you failed in yours too. But Brother Kasuka is revered for succeeding in his. And because of how he succeeds in more missions than you, is far superior than you… you're jealous aren't you?"

Something inside the young man snapped. It was like a thin rubber band that was holding onto the tornado inside him was finally ripped from the pressure and snapped right back with a deadly force. There was a sound of a wooden bench being crushed by just a fist alone followed by a crunching sound of the planks on the floor being smashed. A scream echoed through the halls as Shizuo unleashed his anger all in one throw.

It was short and fast. The beast quelling once the violence was unleashed. He cursed at his supernatural strength as he looked at the damage and tossed the papers towards Brother Niekawa's body.

"Don't. Piss me off again."

And with that, Brother Shizuo retreated to his quarters, his shoulders slumped and heart heavy.

* * *

Heiwajima Shizuo hated violence. He hated how violence had killed his family. He hated the person he had become, drenched in blood of another every day…

Shizuo was always a short tempered child, but he grew more so after that 'incident.' Because of it, the solemn Shizuo did not get along with the other orphans in the church. When he got picked on or bullied, Shizuo erupted in anger, causing him to throw whatever was the nearest… including the heavy wooden church benches which were nailed to the floor. In a fit of rage, at a tender age or 8, Shizuo had ripped the bench twice his size and weight from the floor and threw it across the hall.

Ever since then, the children avoided him. Save for a weirdo who was fascinated with his body and asked if he could cut him open and see what made him so strong. Only Shinra Kishitani, who grew to become the doctor for the church, was somewhat close to the young boy with serious chocolate eyes.

But Shizuo was fine being alone. He even avoided his younger brother Kasuka as much as he could because he didn't want him to be an outcast like him. And because Shizuo wanted to protect his only blood brother… and thus kept a dark secret from Kasuka as long as he could, before the word got out by the other members of the church, whispering rumors.

The secret about the vampire named Orihara Izaya.

* * *

"I heard vampires are ugly and have four arms! And they also have fangs like sabertooth tigers! And they rip you apart when they bite you!" The kid with hair slicked back exclaimed before making a 'rawr!' sound, head tossing back violently while his arms extended out. The group of girls around him screamed and giggled at his stories, their attention captivated.

Normally Shizuo wouldn't interfere but that day was a special day… a day which came only once a month. And he was already anxious about what he had to do later that night. So instead he rolled his eyes at the boy and said, "That's not true."

The group of kids playing in the playground all turned their attention to the new blond kid playing by himself in the sand box with his younger brother. They had just arrived to the orphanage run by the church about a half a year back, and the kids were slowly adjusting to them.

The boy with his hair slicked back like 'a vampire' with a towel as his makeshift cape, walked over with a huff. "Oh yeah? How do you know? You saw one before?" He was backed up with two of his 'gang members' who always followed him.

"Yeah I did." Shizuo said with a defiant glare. He didn't like how this kid looked down on him.

"Oh yeah? So how did he look huh?"

"Yeah speak up!"

"How did he look if you saw one?"

"Horada-kun's parents were eaten by vampires!"

"He said he saw them!"

"Horada-kun knows everything!"

"Horada-kun was right there when the vampires were killing his parents and he survived because he had a cross!"

"No, he said he used garlic."

"No he didn't! He said he cast a magic spell and all the vampires screamed and ran away!"

The boys all started talking while the girls all whispered. Horada, the boy with his hair slicked back and wearing a towel as a cape tried to look smug as his followers backed him up. Shizuo rolled his eyes at the liar. He knew 'Horada' was lying. He knew that garlics or crosses didn't work on vampires. Or well… he thought they didn't, since that's not what the hunters used to capture the vampire that killed his own parents.

Shizuo remembered that night well. Too well. How the vampire crashed into their house easily and slammed his brother against the wall as if he was just a stuffed toy. Thankfully Kasuka lost his consciousness soon after… and he was saved from seeing the horrific ceremony that followed afterwards.

Shizuo remembered how his father died, trying to protect his mom. He remembered crying as he held onto his mother's skirt, himself only 8 years old. He couldn't see as his mother blocked the view but he saw shadows that were on the floor. The vampire broke the neck of his father like a twig. His mother pulling him free and forcing him under the bed before the vampire grabbed her and wretched her away from Shizuo.

Shizuo remembered whimpering under the bed as he heard the blood-curling scream of his mother while the vampire fed. Then his bed was overturned. He remembered looking up to see the vampire for the first time…

He was beautiful. Even with the blood dripping down his mouth and fingers. His skin was pale in comparison, only adding to the illumination. His eyes were soft, not like those of a killer.

"It's alright. You'll feel good soon enough."

His voice was gentle and charming like a sweet lullaby. The raven haired vampire spread his thin black wings to cover Shizuo and drag him closer for a hug.

"Shh… don't cry. You'll feel wonderful… very soon."

Then he was bitten.

Standing in the playground surrounded by bunch of kids who didn't really know about vampires was seriously annoying. They made up stories thinking it was cool. But it was immature and childish. Horada was just trying to get some attention by making up these stories but unbeknownst to him vampires were Shizuo's triggers. It forced him to remember that night … the night when he lost his family to a killer. A beautiful and enchanting killer Shizuo really wished he could forget.

"Like I said. Vampire's aren't ugly. They have to lure their prey in. So they can't be ugly." Shizuo said coldly in a matter-of-fact voice. The kids started to murmur that that's very true… and Horada started to panic when he realized he was losing the attention of his followers.

"W-well, the vampire I saw was ugly."

"I doubt you even saw one." Shizuo scoffed.

"You're the liar! You never saw one."

"I did too. In fact I…" Shizuo was about to say that he was about to see one tonight but clamped his mouth shut quickly. Horada didn't understand what was going on but he saw the opportunity to attack.

"Ha! See! You can't even say anything! You're lying! Liar~ Liar~~ Come on, guys! Shizuo's a liar!"

Then the kids started chanting, 'liar~ liar~ liar~' in unison. Simply to say, when Brother Tom had hurried over, the playground looked like a tornado had gone through with twisted jungle gyms and broken swings…. along with several kids crying.

That night, despite Brother Tom's best intentions and thorough explanation of what had happened, Shizuo had gone to the detention room. It was a solitary room with nothing but plain cold stone walls. He shivered in there, sulking as he huddled in the corner. He tried to pass his time by day dreaming of something pleasant but… all he could think about was that night his family was murdered and what he had to do in few hours.

When midnight struck, a Brother opened the cell door, the sound of the rust creaking. Shizuo didn't realize he had fallen asleep leaning against the coarse wall. The small candle light of the lantern jolted him awake as the brown hooded and cloaked Brother grabbed him by the wrist and roughly pulled him up. He muttered how he disdained this job and why was it 'his turn' this time, grumbling all the way as they walked down the spiral stairs down to the dark basement.

Shizuo hated this too. He had to do this once every month. When everyone was asleep. He wished it was always Brother Tom who helped him, but the other Brothers did not like how Brother Tom favored Shizuo. So they had decided to take turns.

"Go! Move!" The Brother sharply pushed Shizuo forward after giving him a small runed dagger, not willing to go into the cell doors with him. It stank within, the reek of blood and decay strong enough to make someone gag. And it was so poorly lit that the flickering shadows from the small candle only made Shizuo fear what was behind that heavy iron door, which had become red with rust, even more.

Shizuo kept wishing it was Tom who was with him. He would hold his hand the entire time while Shizuo finished this ceremony. But no. It was just another Brother, another terrified monk who detested vampires.

The young boy carefully walked inside, tiptoeing as he entered the room. The walls were covered in magic circles and seals, candles lit around the center circle. In the middle was a table with more rune writings written along the side. And on top was the heavily shackled vampire, wrapped in bonds and chains.

He was breathing in sharp ragged moans. He stank of dried blood.

'He's… thinner… too…' Shizuo noted, his pale skin no longer lightly illuminating and shining with an inner glow. He was bony now, weak.

Suddenly the vampire's wing spread out, scaring Shizuo as he took several steps back, dropping his dagger in the process. The raven haired vampire craned his head to turn to him, his voice ragged as he hacked and coughed. He tried to stretch his hand out, trying to reach for Shizuo but he was bound too tight to move even an inch.

'It's okay… it's okay… he can't hurt you. Brother Tom said so…' Shizuo told himself as he grabbed his dagger again. Carefully he walked back, standing on his tippey toe as he looked down at the hallowed face, desperate and…

… hungry.

He cut his thumb with the dagger, just a small slit.

'Remember… one drop.' Shizuo told himself as he carefully watched the blood pool on top of his finger.

Just one drop fell down inside that dry mouth with shriveled lips.

The vampire writhed, the chains rattling violently. Shizuo quickly ran backwards against the wall as the vampire contorted his body, struggling to break free. He was only fed once a month, just to survive…. just enough so that the church could experiment on their first live and captured full fledged-vampire. And one drop of blood revived him but never enough to actually break free of the powerful seals around him.

After feeding, Shizuo ran out of the room and he was finally allowed to go back to his dorm. He kept telling himself that he was a big boy now and that he shouldn't be scared of vampires… that he needed to be the older brother in which Kasuka could look up to.

But Orihara Izaya would always visit him. In his dreams.


	2. Chapter 2

Life is so much easier when you can see it in only black and white.

Vampires were evil. Therefore you kill them.

Church members were good. Therefore everyone gathered and prayed for the good.

It was simpler to just believe, to close your eyes and become blind to everything within the world, save for your faith.

But life was in many shades of grey.

"Please! Please! Just spare my child! Please! She didn't do anything wrong!"

Shizuo stared down at the mother and child… the baby only few months old, wrapped in a dirty blanket, crying her lungs out. The blond vampire hunter winced, the large cross held behind him, ready to strike. The once golden hue covered in blood of the sinned.

He could clearly see the vampire fangs of the baby girl as she cried.

"Sorry. But that child will grow up to eat humans." Shizuo murmured.

Even if that child did no harm yet was it right to kill it merely because she would grow up to be a criminal? Was there truly no way for a vampire child to grow up without harming another human?

If one was born a vampire, must they always be killed immediately? As soon as they are born, were they already sinners?

As those thoughts swam in his head, Shizuo hesitated in striking the child down. And that was his fatal mistake.

The mother vampire, noticing the hesitance of the vampire hunter, lunged for him, her claws extended, aiming directly for his heart.

'Shit!' Shizuo tried to avoid her but, at the angle he was in, he…  
 __  
-BAM BAM BAM-  
  
There were three shots fired as the vampire woman slumped in front of Shizuo. The back up vampire hunter had fired just in time to save him. Shizuo sighed in relief but only briefly. His senior scowled at him as he walked on top of the now-corpse mother and shot the baby point blank into her head.

Shizuo swallowed, wincing as the blood pooled on the floor, slowly covering his boots.

"First time kid?" His senior with a visor said as he took out his smoke and lit it.

"Ah… no. I've been on missions before… " Shizuo started to stammer a reply to his senior Brother Kinnosuke Kuzuhara.

"No shit. I meant was it your first time aiming at a slut's baby." He cursed at his newly partnered recruit.

"Ah… yeah. It was…" Shizuo had gotten used to how the foul mouthed hunters would refer to the vampires. Sluts, whores, bitches… and bastards. They always used derogatory names for them, as if they weren't human.

"Well, next time I ain't gonna be here to save your ass. So don't look at them as babies or women. If they're vampires…" Brother Kuzuhara pointed his shotgun at Shizuo's heart as his visor gleamed in the moonlight.

"Aim and kill 'em. Because if you show them a second of weakness, they won't hesitate to kill  _you._ "

Shizuo nodded solemnly, walking away with his senpai as the trail of blood from his boots followed him. He understood why Father Tom was so against Shizuo following this path. But it was too late.

It was… far easier to think of the world as black and white.

Even if there are baby vampires who have yet to commit a sin and they would still be killed as if they are criminals…

And even if there are Brothers and Fathers in the church who bully others to stand on top of Shizuo…

Life was simpler this way. To suppress your inner sense of good and evil. To be blind to the world.

* * *

"They're all just jealous, you know."

Shizuo look up from where he was sitting to see a brunet boy with glasses. He was grinning at him. Shizuo scowled.

"Go away." Shizuo scoffed as he hugged his legs and sat in his corner under the shades of a large tree. The kids were playing in the playground, their giggling chatters drifting towards them. Ever since that incident, all the kids were avoiding him. They were whispering how that Shizuo was a monster… and some adults were concerned. In order to prove that Shizuo wasn't half vampire, that 'that vampire' who was now trapped under the basement had not made him into one of 'them,' they had to rip out all of Shizuo's fangs. Because if Shizuo was truly a vampire or even part vampire, those fangs should grow back. Shizuo licked at the empty holes with his tongue. They stung a bit, the gum there still soft… but there were no teeth.

And yet he was still bullied. All the adults still feared him and the look of disdain had transferred to the children.

The kid sat down next to Shizuo. "I'm Shinra. Shinra Kishitani. My dad was relocated to work here because of your vampire." Shizuo looked up and blinked at the kid's audacity to not only sit next to him right after he had displayed his supernatural anger… but also to bring up the forbidden topic.

"Wa-wait…  _my vampire?_ " Shizuo looked at him confused at his wording.

"He's yours isn't it? The one downstairs, locked up? Orihara Izaya."

"Dunno his name." Shizuo scowled as he folded his arms and buried his face. It wasn't as if the vampire had introduced himself when he loomed above him and fed on Shizuo's neck.

His body burned at the memory even now. And Shizuo hated that coiling sensation in his stomach.

"How did you know…. He's mine?" Shizuo asked after a long silence when he realized that the bespeckled kid wasn't moving any time soon. It wasn't well known knowledge… in fact, very few Brothers and Fathers actually knew of the blood contract between them. Brother Tom had wanted to keep it as quiet as possible. It was an extra trouble that no one really needed to know after all.

"Like I said, my dad's here because of that vampire in the basement. He's a scientist and a doctor." The boy named Shinra shrugged. "And my dad likes to tell me of his experiments and operations a lot."

"I see." Shizuo went back to being quiet as he watched the other kids play in the playground.

"He's not… my vampire." Shizuo said finally, staring off into space.

"But you made a contract with him right? They said it's the first time the blood contract was done successfully."

"He's still not my vampire!" Shizuo hissed, grimacing, saying a bit with more force then he intended. He noticed Shinra jump a bit, though he still sat next to him.

"S-sorry." Shizuo muttered. "I just don't like to think about it."

He hated it when anyone mentioned vampires. It wasn't cool. It wasn't a cool story nor was it awesome to have been bitten or have your family killed. Kids like Horada who didn't know any better always glorified it, while adults condemned it severely. It wasn't glorious but it shouldn't also be… so…

Shizuo tried to search for the word in his head. A word that would describe how it felt to be treated like a monster. Discriminated? Bullied? As if he was just as vile as the vampires that they detest. A disgrace to the church.

And it wasn't his fault that the vampire hunter had screwed up the blood contract either.  
 _  
-BANG-_

The sound cracked loudly in the child Shizuo's ears as the blood splattered over the side of his face and his hand. His mind had carried him back to his nightmares again as the playground faded.

He looked up to see the vampire wince in pain as the silver bullet tore through his arm. Even with Shizuo's blood on his lips, the child still thought that he was beautiful… this vampire that was feeding on him and had killed his family just seconds ago.

Shizuo whimpered as the blood eyed vampire's hands tightened around his throat. He could feel the blood rushing in his body, pooling towards his middle. It felt weird… hot… He was scared of dying and the pain but he couldn't move. What was worst was he wanted this… and wanted more. To be caressed and touched…. As the vampire fed on his neck.

And that thought terrified him even more than dying.

"Shitty vampire hunters. Can't aim?" the vampire got up as he started chanting a spell, weaving a seal in the air.

Just then, the roof caved in, the large blocks of wood threatening to bury them under. A priest descended with the roof, grinning. Shizuo could see his smile as he lay on the floor, looking up.

"Caught you. We've been hunting you down for some time now."

A golden seal surrounded them in runes. The lights blinded Shizuo's eyes. He remembered hearing the vampire's scream and the priest chanting more runes as the blood contract ceremony continued. It was a long spell… a spell that required to trap the vampire in one place… long enough to finish casting said spell.  
 _  
"Let thine blood be combined with mine. Let mine blood be thy last thou ever drink'est. Let thy thirst be quenched with mine only for you and I will become one and one alone."_

The priest finished the spell with an "Amen," and smirked.

"You're mine now, you pitif- Hnngkku…!" The prist's cackle was cut short as the vampire stabbed his claws right into his throat.

"What was that, fucking priest? _Yours?_ Why don't you continue your spell now huh?" The vampire snickered as he watched the priest choke on his own blood. The vampire did not know what kind of spell was placed on him, just that the light  _burned_  and immobilized him temporarily. There was blood running down his temple and down his sleeves, but the vampire had survived through the pain and attacked as soon as the priest made a fatal opening.

"If you can't speak, then you can't bind the spell, yes? You priests think you know everything. So weak… so  _mortal…_ " The vampire stood up straighter, watching carefully as the lights died out from the priest's eyes. Once the vampire made sure that the hunter was completely dead, he tossed the slumped corpse to the floor.

"Fuck… that ring of light did more damage than I thought…" The vampire fell on top of the quivering child once he had made sure he vanquished his assaulter.

Shizuo was scared. He should run. But his legs wouldn't move.

"Don't worry. Just close your eyes…"

And the vampire bit him once more to continue his feeding because he needed fresh blood to heal.

But that was the fatal mistake that Orihara Izaya had made that night.

The spell was complete. In order to bind it, the vampire had to drink the blood of a human that he would be making a contract with. And unknowingly, Orihara Izaya fed off on the child, trying to recover from the wound he received from the hunter.

The rest happened quickly. The backup hunters came in, surrounding the heavily wounded vampire, capturing him successfully. Kasuka and Shizuo were rescued. At first, they were to be sent to any orphanage, until the hunters realized that the vampire had accidentally finished the spell himself by feeding on one of the child… and that the vampire will always need his blood. Or at least, prefer his blood.

The vampires could live off of blood of other humans, but the spell was created so that the other human blood would taste vile. And the healing effects and other nutrients that the vampires received from the blood would be diminished drastically.

So Shizuo and Kasuka were brought up to live in the church. And while the church experimented on their first live captured vampire, it was Shizuo's job to feed him once a month. The adults considered it a small payment for otherwise free lodging and free food. Though Shizuo despised the treatment. More than anything, he wished he could escape from here, far away from the glaring eyes of the hateful adults, far away from the children jeering at him and far away from that tortured soul in the basement that kept chasing him in his dreams.

But for Kasuka…. For his one and only younger brother, Shizuo endured. He wanted his younger brother to have a proper education and a safe place to stay. And for that… Shizuo bore the burden.

The soft wind gently caressed the two boys sitting under the tall tree, the shade providing a temporary shelter from the bright sun above them. Shizuo shivered despite the warm weather.

"Do you hate vampires?" the kid next to him randomly asked.

"Of course I do!" Shizuo rolled his eyes. "Who doesn't?!" Hell, Shizuo had plenty of reasons to hate vampires. Not only did that vampire kill his parents, now Shizuo was stuck in this church despised by others. He  _hated_  that vampire who had destroyed his once peaceful and loving family.

"Why? Because he killed your parents?" Shinra asked pointedly.

"Well, yes!" Shizuo glared at the boy. "Wouldn't you?!"

"No. Not really." Shinra shrugged. "You know, you're not the only one… whose parents were killed by vampires."

Shizuo gawked. It was the first time he had ever heard of it. Horada boasted but it was an obvious lie. But… strangely, Shinra's attitude was more believable.

"But you said… your dad…"

"Yeah. My mom was killed. Well actually, the vampire fed on her until she died… in front of my dad. Which is why my dad has a vendetta against them I think. He likes to… dissect them. Find out what hurts them… that sort of thing." Shinra frowned a bit, his small eyebrows furrowing. As if… Shinra himself detested that fact more than hating the vampires for killing his mom.

"Well, I think I understand your dad. I would want to hurt them too. I want to become a vampire hunter when I grow up." Shizuo huffed, trying to defend Shinra's father, thus defending himself.

Shinra stared down at Shizuo with such serious eyes, the blond wondered if he had said something wrong.

"You really don't know anything, do you?" Shinra said coldly. Shizuo flared up at being looked down upon by someone who didn't know him at all.

"What the hell are you trying to-!" Shizuo stood up suddenly, his hand crushing into the tree barks, half lifting the tree eight times his size from the roots. But Shinra did not flinch at all.

"You have no idea… what they are doing to your vampire."

"Like I  _said,_  he's  _not. My. Vampire!_ " Shizuo hissed, trying his best to calm the rage within him. Though deep inside, he was slightly impressed that this kid did not seem to be scared of him. Only Kasuka had been unafraid of his powers.

"If you had seen him… you'd know that he had paid his price and far more…" The boy stood up to look at Shizuo in the eye. He adjusted his glasses which reflected the little sunlight through the leaves.

"You don't know single  _shit_  about me! Or what I had to go through!" Shizuo yelled back.

"Oh really? Then were your limbs ever chopped off to see if they would grow back? And have someone ever cut you open to see what your guts look like without giving you any sedative? Because you know, painkillers are a waste on vampires."

Shizuo paused at those words. The rage within him slowly subsided as the red in his vision faded.

"W-what?"

"You heard me. You know they are  _experimenting_  down there. Exactly what did you think  _experiments were?_  It's not like taking a survey you know, or circling in a multiple question test. It's a human experiment they're doing down there… well… Vampire experiments, to be exact. But regardless, they are experimenting all sorts of drugs on him, seeing how far they could go before he dies." Shinra sighed as he took off his glasses to wipe it with his shirt.

"I've seen them actually use a chainsaw to his limbs." Shinra said with a thin smile. "Made out of silver. To see if it cuts smoother. It's a dumb experiment. But they have now scientifically proven that chain saws made with metal or silver, it does the same effect on the vampire. It hurts them if done with enough force. Though silver burns them a bit more than metal obviously since vampires have allergic reactions to silver."

Shizuo looked at the boy stunned as he told such a gory story in a matter-of-fact tone. As if reading from a text book.

"H-how … " Shizuo didn't even know how to finish the sentence as he dropped the tree back in its place.

"I told you. My dad takes me to his experiments from time to time. I was there when they cut him open a few times. Once they cut him open and watched what happens to his esophagus and stomach as the holy water is forced down his throat. And again, to understand clearly how it effects vampires, he isn't given any painkillers or sedatives."

Shizuo blinked, not knowing what to think.

"He's being experimented on daily you know. Even now as we speak. You may not hear his scream but he's down there. Screaming." Shinra gave him a sad quizzical smile. "Do you still hate him?"

Shizuo wanted to say yes. If he remembered how gruesome his parents died… or how he was being bullied in the church…

But the vampire had given them a quick death. His parents probably didn't suffer much. And… being bullied wasn't as bad as having his limbs cut or his chest being ripped open… probably…

"You don't… hate vampires… do you?" Shizuo asked the question right back at him.

Shinra shrugged. "I've seen many weird creatures while following my dad in his travels. And I've found… that these creatures are far more beautiful… than any humans. It's us humans who are cruel in some ways. We have war against each other. Fairies I found were gentler and far kinder. There's this fairy I met few years back, the most beautiful woman in the world. And can you believe me if I said she didn't have a head?"

Shizuo raised his eyebrows and laughed. "Wait, you fell in love with someone without a head? How do you know she was the most beautiful woman in the world then?"

Shinra smiled. "I just know. She was definitely the most beautiful woman in the world. " Then his smile faded into a more serious look. "I don't hate vampires, Shizuo-kun. If I did, I don't think I would have given that vampire a painkiller."

"You gave him… a painkiller?" Shizuo looked at him with astonished eyes.

"Shh… don't tell anyone. But yeah. I slipped one in his mouth before we left. And you know what? He actually turned to look at me. He looked surprised too. And he mouthed the word… what I think was a 'thank you.' Though… they had pulled out all his teeth and his throat was too mangled to speak…"

The thought of having someone without teeth and a mangled throat made Shizuo shiver. He remembered… how beautiful that vampire was. It was hard to imagine him ugly.

'I think… he was crying when I left.' Shinra thought to himself, looking away into the far distance as he remembered. The exhausted vampire, tied up on a table, his chest still ripped open to see the effects of the holy water inside him. The scientists have finally got some good data and packed to leave. They didn't even bother to stitch him back up since as long as Izaya did not lose his blood, he would heal up. Eventually.

The little Shinra had watched the gruesome experiment, not flinching at the gore. He had seen worse. But he pitied the vampire, unable to scream with his throat crushed so that he won't be able to puke out the holy water, only allow it to pour into him with a filter.

When people were filing to leave, Shinra filched a small painkiller and when everyone's backs were turned, he snuck one pill inside Izaya's mouth.

Izaya turned his head, his eyes stunned at first, and then when the effects of the painkiller started to numb his mouth and down his throat, he knew what the pill was for.

Before Shinra turned to follow his father out the door, he thought… he had seen the vampire's eyes glisten with gratitude and mouthed the word 'thank you.' Thinking back on it… he was pretty sure… that the vampire did so.

It was probably the only small compassion he had received in a long time.

* * *

Shizuo walked down the same old stone stairs, his breath puffing in the frosty air. His feet dragged, the boots pinching his heels from the long walk, his coat ends tattered and bloodied from his last mission.

Memories were weird things... they came to haunt him at random times, triggers causing him to walk down each memory lane that connected to look random at first but with a distinct pattern, one thing leading to another.

It was funny how trauma worked. He had watched helplessly as a baby was shot in her face. A vampire baby, but still a baby.

He remembered how hollow it had felt when the baby's cry ended abruptly. Its crying was annoying but the sudden silence chilled his heart even more.

The winter cold had reached the stone walls. The basement was never warmed of course.

For once Shizuo wondered about the vampire down here as his own puff of breath faded away... bearing this cold below freezing weather every day and night each season.

'It's cold for me... right now. Must be pretty bad to be trapped here for years...'

Shizuo had always tried to forget about the vampire that lived under the church, but seeing the baby die so mercilessly made him remember Shinra's words as a kid.

_"I've seen many weird creatures while following my dad in his travels. And I've found… that these creatures are far more beautiful… than any humans. It's us humans who are cruel in some ways. We have war against each other. Fairies I found were gentler and far kinder."_

Did that baby... really had to … die? Without even being given a chance at life?

_  
"You really don't know anything, do you? You have no idea… what they are doing to your vampire."_

Shizuo stood in front of the iron door, rust in red. It stank of blood here. And rot. Now he knew why it did.

He knew. He knew that they were experimenting on this vampire. Even if he couldn't hear the screams, he heard them now; the silent screams that rang in his nightmares.

He opened the door, the creaking of the rust loud in his ears. The ice had settled on the edges of the room, the air even chillier than the stairway.

The hunter took out his rune carved dagger. He cut his finger like he always did. The scent of the blood alerted the vampire awake; he moaned as he tried to get up. It was unsuccessful as always, his body tied down and his eyes blindfolded with dirty rags.

Shizuo walked over to the table. Usually he would slip a drop in and walk away without a second thought. As a child he had feared this duty of his, but as an adult it was just a tedious task. Or he had armored himself with apathy in order to keep it a tedious task instead of stressing over it. But for once he took a closer look.

His limbs were intact, probably rejuvenated. But his wings were chopped and ripped. The bandages covered most of his wounds but Shizuo could see through that they were artificial bandages, hastily placed so that Shizuo wouldn't see the real damage within. The bandages probably did nothing to heal the vampire, just to cover up most of the gaping holes.

They were trying to hide the facts of the gruesome torture the vampire received daily. It probably wasn't something they wanted the outsiders to find out and intrude upon their freedom to experiment.

For the first time, Shizuo felt pity. Sure, this vampire had killed his parents and made his life miserable but...

_"If you had seen him… you'd know that he had paid his price and far more…"_

Shinra's words came back to haunt him again.

He looked at the blood dripping down his finger to his palm. Instead of just a drop, Shizuo unthinkingly committed a sin that no priest should ever commit.

Shizuo inserted his entire finger inside the vampire's mouth so he could suck on it.

He watched as the vampire's expression turned into a faint surprise before hungrily sucking on his finger, licking it greedily with his tongue. Shizuo frowned. He realized... the vampire indeed had no teeth. They really did pull all of them out. Since Shizuo knew that the teeth could regenerate, that meant that they pulled them out constantly.

The mouth inside was soft as the vampire sucked, his breath slowly warming up and his blue cracked lips not as quivering. Immediately, Shizuo felt the blood rush to his face and below his stomach. This feeling... as the coil inside him wound tight and his pants felt more constricted. As a child he didn't understand what this feeling was... just that it was disgusting yet he desired it. As a priest and adult, he understood it. It was lust. When a vampire fed on someone the sucking caused the human to feel intense ecstasy, causing the blood to taste sweeter. Which was why no priest was allowed to have their blood sucked by vampires, under any conditions... and why even as a child, the Brothers had told him to drop the blood into the vampire's mouth rather than having the vampire suck on him directly.

He understood now. That as a child, it wasn't that Shizuo was scared of the vampire breaking out of his cage to eat him. But he was far more scared that he himself wanted it and lusted after this vampire. His nightmares were confusing since as a child he didn't understand what lust was or why he continued to have wet dreams despite that the fact that he hated his nightmares. He even remembered trying to clean up his mess before the kids found out and teased him that he still wet his bed in his preteen years. It wasn't piss… but kids didn't know any better.

"Shit... I'm not going anywhere. Don't be so greedy..." Shizuo huffed, smirking thinly as he watched the starved vampire suck on his finger desperately. His breath was getting hotter despite the cold winter air. The chains rattled as the vampire leaned forward for more, sucking harder and longer, drinking his fill for the first time in years. His tongue was long and soft... Shizuo had no idea a vampire's tongue was this delicate, smooth and silky. Hell, Shizuo's never kissed before, so he had no idea tongues were this velvety at all. The puffs of his breath grew harder, stronger, as Shizuo started to taking sharp intakes of breath, trying to stifle his moans. Fuck, it felt good even if it was just sucking on his finger. Enough that Shizuo was tempted to cut his other finger and insert both of them into that trembling mouth.

"Mmmngh..."

Shizuo swallowed as he heard the vampire moan, the sound sending shivers straight to his groin. Fuck... at this rate...

The hunter pulled his finger out hastily, not wanting to but he knew he must. Any more... and it would be bad for both of them. He had already given the vampire more than he should have. Shizuo slipped out his finger, coming away with drool and blood. He thought he felt something, not soft, but sharp and hard.

The screech was inhuman and piercing as Shizuo backed away, covering his ears. It was like a banshee's scream as the vampire struggled, trying to break free from his bonds to reach for more blood. Shizuo was about to strike him but stopped.

The sound... was so pitiful. So  _desperate._  And filled with pain and hunger.

He just... wanted to be fed.

The vampire screeched again, forcing Shizuo to cover his ears. He creaked one eye open as he tried to get a good look, but both widened when he saw that there were teeth, sharp vampire teeth, inside that mouth. And there was a swirl of wind, like a tornado trapped within the room.

It was then Shizuo realized his mistake too late. The vampire had also grown a full pair of wings and had summoned enough strength to rip the bandages and snap the shackled chains. He was flapping his wings rapidly to create the wind. Papers battered every surface as the broken vials and glass tubes for experiments swirled in the air dangerously, scratching the walls, cutting into the rune seals that trapped the vampire.

"W-what the!" Shizuo grabbed for his silver dagger to strike at the vampire. But the vampire flew into the air, grabbing hold of the ceiling as he avoided the attack. The clawed hand ripped the blindfold and their eyes locked.

Shizuo's eyes widened at the pair of ruby eyes glowing in the dark. They were just as beautiful as that night.

With the bandages still wrapped around him and some hanging loose, Orihara Izaya flew out the door.

"Fuck!" Shizuo chased after him. He noticed that the seals were broken now. Several sharp cuts have made a small opening in the magic circle for the vampire to escape. But more importantly…

Shizuo didn't really have to alert everyone. Already there was a scream in the main hall. Shizuo cursed to himself. When he got up, he saw a Sister shaken as she held the side of her neck. He checked and sure enough, there was one pair of bite marks.

The blond hunter didn't even get to ask if the Sister was alright. The bell was ringing wildly in the middle of the night, alerting of an intruder. There were sounds of shouts as the hunters gathered to the main square but it was too late.

Because Shizuo looked up to see a silhouette of a winged vampire fly away in the full moon. And the young hunter knew... that he had committed an unforgivable sin; a crime that would disgrace him unless he could bring that vampire back to the church.


	3. Chapter 3

"You let a single vampire _escape_ in a church full of hunters?! Are you all fools?!"

The desk shook as the fist slammed against the table. Not a single hunter in the room could raise his head proudly, especially Shizuo who tried to shrink into the shadows of a corner… but all too soon, a voice raised to point him out.

"And how the hell did he escape all those seals?! He hasn't ever before, if I recall?" the head priest Kazamoto growled as he read the reports.

"As I recall, the report indicates that he had more than one drop of blood which gave the vampire enough strength to escape." The priest sitting on the council desk along with Father Kazamoto pointed out coolly with a level voice. He folded his hands together as his sharp grey eyes turned to the young blond hunter trying his best to hide from everyone.

"Brother Heiwajima was supposed to feed the vampire tonight. Did something go awry?"

Those cold words were just above a whisper but gained the attention of the entire room as everyone turned in unison to stare in the direction of the tall guilty-looking hunter who knew he had screwed up.

"I… M-my knife slipped… and more than few drops fell into his mouth. I apologize, Father Shiki." Shizuo confessed quietly, aware of his own lie. His eyes were hesitant and he knew his voice cracked there… making his confession really hard to believe.

Shiki, one of the high priests in charge of the Nebula Hunter Organization along with Kazamoto and several others merely sat back to gauge the situation, while Kazamoto remained furious.

"A few drops of blood shouldn't be sufficient enough for the vampire to flee!"

"Are you saying that Brother Heiwajima is  _lying?_ " The door swung open as Father Tom entered the room in defense of his apprentice. Father Shiki's eyes narrowed.

"Father Tom, this is a meeting for just hunters. As that you are not among the guild…"

"This is my apprentice who's being wrongly accused. Unless you have enough proof that…" Tom intercepted only to be cut short by the thin priest with cold grey eyes. "We never accused Brother Heiwajima of purposefully feeding the vampire. It was just a speculation…"

Shizuo felt even more guilty when Tom came to his defense… even more so since in truth, he knew he was lying.

"It is true though, that the blood of the contractor is far stronger than normal human's. More than few drops could be enough to revive the vampire fully, if Brother Heiwajima had accidentally slipped his knife. But no matter, the vampire will soon learn that he will have to come back." There was a thin smile presented by Father Shiki, one that sent chills down to the bone of everyone in the room.

Shizuo realized then… the vampire probably did not know about the contract. After all, it was a new spell that always failed when Izaya was subjected to it. So long as none of the priests told the vampire about the condition of the spell he was cursed upon, there was no way,… he would know…

"He will have to come back. The fact that the Sister who was bitten confessed that the vampire threw her away in disgust after one bite is enough proof. He will soon find out after biting every human he can find, that none of them taste the same for him anymore. And that only one person's blood is what he craves." Father Shiki turned to Shizuo with a cool but penetrating gaze.

"He  _did_ see your face before he took off, am I right?"

"Ah… yes…" Shizuo stammered a reply.

"Good. Then he will come back. Since it is your mistake, it will be your responsibility to kill him."

"Kill… him?" Shizuo blinked in surprise. Didn't they want to bring the vampire back alive for more experiments?

"Isn't that what hunters are suppose to do?" Shiki scoffed before adjourning the meeting. Everyone left one by one, several of them glaring at Shizuo for messing up. Shizuo clearly heard Brother Horada complaining loudly to a fellow hunter how useless the monster Shizuo was. His hands fisted but he said nothing.

Tom pet him on the shoulder and tried his best to comfort him, but none of his words reached Shizuo's ears.

As he walked out of the room he remembered Shinra's words and a small revelation hit him.

They didn't want their experiments to be known.

Which was why now that the vampire escaped, they wanted him dead, to keep their crimes under wraps.

* * *

It was a mess for a week in the small city around the church. There were many reports of civilians being bitten by the vampire, even small animals. But all of them had said that one bite was enough for the vampire to spit out the blood and fly away, so no one was dangerously hurt, just surprised and shaken.

Still, the vampire was too agile to be caught, especially with his avian ability. The people in the city still demanded proper protection from the church and many accused the hunters for being so useless. The criticism angered all the other hunters, most of them sending those glares directly at the young blond hunter who had admitted a fault in the matter. Only Tom, Vorona, Kasuka and Ruri stood by his side and remained loyal, none of them ever bringing up the matter to Shizuo's face while they trusted that Shizuo had done everything he could to prevent the 'accident'.

But guilt weighed heavily on Shizuo since he knew that it was no accident. Rather, it was a choice. He had purposefully fed that vampire out of pity.

He should have known that there should be no pity for the wicked.

Shizuo sighed as he sat under the tall holy tree in the center of the graveyard. It was where he usually ran away to when he wanted to think things through or was bullied since kids or adults rarely came to the graveyard. Though tonight, like many other nights, Shizuo was there instead of sleeping at his dorm since if he were to show any signs of 'resting' inside the church, he would definitely be criticized. So even if he were to sleep, Shizuo made sure he slept outside, so people could at least 'think' that he was working. If he was caught sleeping during night, he was blamed for not searching for the vampire since they were nocturnal creatures. If he was caught sleeping during the day, he was blamed for being lazy. It was a lose-lose situation so Shizuo just kept himself out of sight from everyone.

So there he sat, under a tree to get a quick nap. It was near impossible to catch a flying creature. Most of the time when there was a vampire sighting, the hunters laid a trap around the potential houses that the vampire might strike and kill him before the vampire even knew that there were hunters in the village. In this case, the vampire  _knew_ that he was in a city filled with hunters and used precautions not to get caught. By the time the hunters came, the cursed being had already taken a sip and ran off. Most of the time the vampire feedings took a lot longer, making it easier for the hunters to capture the damned soul… but since this vampire ran away before he actually fed on his prey, only to taste them, it was seriously very difficult to trap him.

The best way was to just wait it out as Father Shiki had quickly figured out. But that didn't stop the civilians from blaming the church or the hunters from blaming Shizuo.

It was when Shizuo was about to get a wink of sleep that he heard a flutter of wings.

"I can smell you, you know." Shizuo growled, not bothering to look up. The stench of blood and the undead.

"Well, I certainly wasn't hoping for a surprise attack, else you really are a worthless hunter. Granted, I've met plenty of those for the past week. You all seriously lack organization. Not to mention, all of you taste quite nasty."

Shizuo frowned. This certainly wasn't what he had planned for their first reunion, though it was quite far from their first meeting. He raised his head up to see the vampire hanging on the tree branch and looking down at him… like a bat.

"Had enough causing trouble?" Shizuo narrowed his eyes and growled. He had to remain angry… else he might fall into the temptation of his charm.

The vampire still had his bloody red eyes that glowed in the dark like a pair of rubies. His skin was much fairer now, probably due to drinking blood from everyone even if it was just a sip here and there. He must have stolen some clothes since he was now dressed properly instead of wearing just bandages. And the cape was flapping behind his head since he was upside down.

"Well, since you probably know the answer, I figured I would stop by. Why is it that only your blood tastes so sweet and no one else's? Trust me, I even bit dogs and cows to see if they tasted better. Did they place a spell on my tongue?" The raven haired vampire made a face as if he was totally disgusted by the memory of biting other animals to test it. Either that or just the sheer memory of the nasty bitterness of the blood he had drank over the past week, Shizuo couldn't tell.

"Why are you coming to me? You know I'm not going to answer you. My mission is to kill you." Shizuo stood up, holding onto his cross, his eyes fixated on the vampire.

"Whoa… hey, drop that. I came here for a friendly chat, not a fight." The vampire quickly swung around the branch and sat up.

"You don't remember me, do you?" Shizuo wasn't even sure why he said that, his smile bitter. Did he really want this damned creature to remember him that badly? He shoved that thought away.

"Remember… you? Have we met? I mean, other than you feeding me once in awhile. I do remember the taste of your blood. In fact, I think I can smell your blood from miles away, " The monster in black stared at him in confusion.

Shizuo's hand gripped on the cross angrily and swung it, trying to strike down the vampire. The creature simply jumped to a higher branch.

"My name is Heiwajima Shizuo, you bloodsucking flea! You killed my parents and tried to suck my blood dry! And quit jumping around and get down here so I can kill you!" Shizuo growled, yelling at the vampire up in the tree. He wasn't suppose to damage the holy tree, else he would have cut it in half already.

"Heiwajima… Heiwajima… the name doesn't ring a bell… it's not like I remember every cow in the field you know…" the vampire crossed his arms and tried to think, which only made Shizuo more angry. He looked at the tree trunk, trying to see if he could climb it. He climbed it as a child fine, shouldn't be a problem as an adult, right?

"Ah, I remember! That kid!" the vampire clapped his hands as Shizuo started climbing…. only to slid down in embarrassment. "I remember now! You're that kid I was feeding on before those damned hunters got me! My, you've grown…. What a pity. I liked you better when you were wee-smaller. Cuter too." The vampire tsked as he crossed his legs and watched in amusement while Shizuo struggled to climb without breaking the holy tree.

"Dammit flea! Get down here!"

"Noooo way~ Who in the right vampire mind would walk right into the path of a flying cross?" The raven cooed and chortled, swinging his legs freely now like a kid. As soon as Shizuo struggled on top of the first branch, the vampire had climbed even higher. Shizuo cursed.

"Priests shouldn't be cursing like that~ oh my virgin ears~" The vampire covered his ears and blushed in a sarcastic chaste.

"Damn you flea! Once I'll get my hands on you… I'll…!" Shizuo swung his cross at the vampire leering back at him.

"Aww… is little Shizu-chan all grown up now? Gonna teach your vampire a lesson?" The vampire placed his hands on his hips and teased.

"SHIZU-CHAN?!" Shizuo's voice cracked a new octave. At that moment, he didn't care anymore if he had to destroy the holy tree. He flung his cross directly at the vampire.

"Ha! As if such a direct…." Izaya easily side-stepped the large cross …

But suddenly the seals activated. As the cross was flung to the air, everything under it suddenly felt  _heavy_  as if the gravity shifted under the umbrella. The vampire's eyes widened as he felt a sudden heavy weight on his back and shoulders, forcing him to lose his balance and fell heavily to earth. The vampire growled in anger. No one had made him eat  _dirt_  in battle in a long time.

However, what surprised him the most was when the hunter fell next to him and  _walked to him._  The vampire couldn't even move a  _finger_  yet this  _human_ could walk towards him with ease! What kind of monster was he?

"Caught you." Shizuo said as he snatched the cross that fell from the sky with one hand and impaled the earth next to the side of the vampire's head in warning. The heavy gravity was lifted once the spell was gone. Shizuo took a quick glance at the tree. Luckily the massive tree only had small damages around the tips and wasn't leveled to the ground as he feared, which was good. Shizuo didn't want any more trouble than he usually got for using his cross. He turned his attention to the smirking vampire now.

"Gonna kill me?"

The vampire looked up at Shizuo challengingly. The hunter realized, this … being… didn't seem to fear death. Shizuo wasn't sure what his trump card was but…

"No. I want to renew our contract."

The vampire blinked in confusion. Shizuo had made up his mind. He knew what he was going to say next was dangerous and possibly wrong… but there were many questions he wanted answered. And with this vampire dead, none of them would be resolved.

"The contract. You were a bumbling idiot and you made a contract with the kid fifteen years ago." Shizuo rolled his eyes as he explained to the vampire for the first time.

"The previous priest, the hunter who you killed place a Blood Contract on you. And the next person's blood you fed on is to be your last. Meaning….. me."

The vampire frowned. "That makes no sense… I clearly drank other people's…"

"Yeah, yeah. But they taste nasty right? It's a spell that the priests were trying to perfect for years. Unfortunately, the one priest who was able to cast it correctly, you killed him. Anyways the spell goes like this. After the spell is cast, and the next person's blood you feed on, that person's blood will be the only blood you'll ever want since it'll be the only blood that'll taste good to you and provide the right nutrients. Everyone else's… well, … "

"Taste like piss water. Ah, fuck…" The vampire rolled his eyes and sighed. "That fucking explains a lot. So I can't kill you unless I want to drink piss water for the rest of my life? Great…."

Then his eyes turned sharp as he looked up at the hunter. "So if I kill you, the spell turns nil? Or…."

Shizuo shrugged. "You killed the spell castor but the spell's still intact right? Think killing the contractor will stop it when killing the castor didn't do anything?"

The vampire frowned again. It was a risk he'd rather not take.

"So if you die… I'm stuck with drinking piss water all my life?" It dawned on the vampire then why the priests would create such a spell. It bound the vampire to the contractor forever. If he wanted to be fed right, he would have to… protect the contractor and make him live as long as he could. If only the contractor was weak, the vampire could probably trap him and feed on him without much work but…

The vampire looked back up at this youthful hunter who was clearly far stronger than him. Unless that the gravity did nothing on the castor… which could be the case too.

"So by contract… you mean… you want me to work with you." The vampire asked cautiously.

"Either that or I could crush your skull right now and make you sure don't rejuvenate. Without my blood, you wouldn't survive long anyway," Shizuo shrugged. It was a big risk. A risk that would jeopardize his position as a hunter….

But already all the hunters hated him anyway, it wasn't as if he had anything to lose.

Besides… Shizuo… wasn't sure… what he felt when he saw that once beautiful vampire turned so weak and pathetic, breathing in shallow pants as he begged for a drop of blood that would revive him…. tortured for years just because he was a vampire….

And the haunting wailing of that baby vampire that wouldn't leave his mind, the baby that had no more future left just because she was born as a damned creature…

Something in Shizuo's heart clenched painfully at that memory. He refused to acknowledge that it was pity or anything… just….

Shizuo wanted to prove that he wasn't a failure. That there was no such thing as born a 'monster'. That 'his' vampire could be tamed and trained… just like Ruri was tamed by Kasuka. That perhaps just because someone was born a vampire didn't mean that they had to be killed immediately. That vampires… could  _'change'._

Shizuo wanted to do something that should be unthinkable to a priest but should be obvious at the same time. He wanted to give this vampire... a chance. A mercy.

"Become mine, Orihara Izaya," Shizuo said as he looked down at the stunned vampire looking up at him for calling out on his full name for the first time. "Though you're a damned creature, all sins are forgiven under God's mercy. And the truth will set you free."

Orihara Izaya smirked wryly, his eyebrows frowning and his smile a bit bitter, "You know, that's quite a cheesy line. Why would an immortal wish for freedom? I am already free."

"Or you could rot in hell." Shizuo scowled. Izaya giggled heartily at his anger, which made the hunter's steel heart flutter just a bit.

"I was pulling your leg, Father. You have a poor sense of humor, so serious." Izaya sat up.

"I'm not a priest yet. Just an apprentice." Shizuo corrected, his eyes still fixated on his vampire in case he spread his wings and flew away.

"Alright. An apprentice." Izaya cupped the young hunter's face and leaned forward. He whispered seductively, "do I have your blessing, young apprentice?"

Shizuo blinks, his breath abated as those lips approached him and those hooded jeweled rubies grew closer and closer…. And…

"W-wait! Stop!" Shizuo pushed away the vampire roughly as he gasped for breath. He cursed inwardly as he realized he almost fell into a spell right there.

"What the hell was that for Shizu-chan?" Izaya coughed as the wind was knocked off of his chest.

"F-for the contract, here." Shizuo stammered, trying to control his beating heart as he quickly cut his fore finger.

"Oh, no. I'm  _not_  sucking on your finger like some  _flea_ again!" Izaya growled. "Who the hell do you think I am? I'm at least 3,000 years your senior! Not a baby!"

"Damn it louse, I'm not going to  _feed_ you with my neck, got it!"

"Oh, hell no! I'm not going to mmmnghh, nnngh…!" Izaya started yelling but Shizuo had shoved his finger right into the vampire's mouth. At first Izaya wanted to protest but when he finally tasted that divine sweet nectar, he quickly gave up complaining and started sucking.

Shizuo's face flushed up as he could feel the lust rising inside him again. He bit his lips as he forcefully crushed his growing arousal and pulled out his finger.

"What the hell Shizu-cha…" Izaya quickly complained when Shizuo removed his 'food'.

"You haven't agreed on the contract." Shizuo reminded the vampire as he sat down and leaned against the old tree.

"Ugh, fine. I'll do it." Izaya agreed hastily, his eyes bloodshot from being bloodthirsty. He kept staring at Shizuo's finger that dripped of the sweet scent.

"Agree that you'll be mine, that you'll protect me if I'm in danger and work with me to capture other vampires." Shizuo said cautiously, still withholding his finger out of reach. The vampire closed in on him, practically sitting in his lap.

"Fine, fine, whatever. I'll save your ass if you're being kicked around too much." Izaya shrugged, his eyes permanently focused on that sweet taste he hadn't had in a week. He was clearly too hungry.

"I mean it fle… Orihara Izaya." Shizuo quickly changed the name he almost blurted out in anger to something a bit formal. He wanted this to be a serious binding contract.

"Look, I understand that I do want to keep you alive if I'm to feed on you. So I promise that no harm will come to you as long as I'm on the watch." Izaya looked up at Shizuo with a bit more seriousness.

"That includes, you, vampires…. And hunters." Shizuo gave Izaya a hard look back. Izaya blinked at the last one but quickly replied. "Of course. Me, vampires, hunters, humans, bears, everything." Then Izaya smiled, which made Shizuo's heart beat. It was the same smile Izaya had given him when he was trying to reassure the scared child… right before he fed of course. But it was a dazzling smile that had made Shizuo fall for him before.

"I'll make sure to protect you Shizu-chan." Izaya held Shizuo's wrist with his hand and drew it close. He licked the beading blood once before it dripped down. "Until the end of my breath, I'm your's."

And with that Shizuo struggled with his lust as the vampire fed on his finger. The vampire spread his wings and covered them both as he fed, their sins veiled in the darkness as their clandestine meeting continued. It was a sin the two committed together and a secret the two kept between them only.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note: (written for kinkmeme and ff/net)
> 
> Happy Halloween everyone! Sorry that this fanfic is far from being over at the end of October. I'll still try to finish it despite that it's not Halloween anymore ahaha. still got some ideas, and their adventure is just beginning.
> 
> ALSO: Both Kazamoto and Shiki are from Awakusu-kai from the novels and the anime. They are all kanbu, or head executives of the yakuza, just FYI for those who don't read the novels… though Shiki does appear in the anime. Fun fact: Both Kazamoto and Shiki are fans of Ruri Hijiribe in the novels haha…
> 
> Thank you for reading!


	4. Chapter 4

Heels clicked and echoed through the stone hallways of the church as the Sister marched to the dorm rooms. Though a lovely blonde, she had no nonsense look to her face. Many men had thought it was a pity that such a beautiful woman had given herself up to the Lord at such a young age, but once they got to know Sister Vorona's personality, they all agreed that though she may possess all the meticulous housekeeping abilities, no man would be able to handle her as a wife.

So the young beautiful blonde Sister marched down the hallways, knocking crisply at each door to collect laundry. When she came to her senpai's door, she remained just as ruthless when she sharply knocked on the wooden entry. There was a groan inside, meaning she had just woken him up but the door remained closed. This was the last door from which she needed to collect laundry and Vorona refused to be deterred, endearing senpai or not. So she knocked sharply again twice before she voiced, "I'm coming in, Shizuo-senpai," and opened the door.

Vorona blinked blankly at the sight. Normally, the sight of male nudity wouldn't bother the Sister as she saw it from a clinical point of view rather than finding it sexual. She had seen Shizuo senpai's bare chest plenty of times since Shizuo normally sleeps with just his blue pajama pants on while she had to yank on the blankets and roll him off the bed to wake him up. But what confused her was… that the solitude-loving senpai of hers… was…

…sleeping next to another man.

"Nngh… is it morning...? Shizu-chan… you've got a guest…" The young man with raven dark hair blinked and groggily tried to shake Shizuo awake while yawning. The man was just wearing a long white dress shirt, rumpled from sleeping. But what caught her attention wasn't the man's clothing or the fact that she didn't know him…

…. But his fangs!

"A vampire!" Vorona shouted a war cry as she simultaneously dropped her basket full of laundry, the shirts, pants and boxers flying in the air as her hands ducked under her dress to grab the semi-automatic rifles strapped onto her thighs, putting them together in mid-air.

"Oh shit!" the vampire's eyes widened as he saw the Sister practically assemble the weapons in the air, knowing that he was dealing with a professional hunter. Instead of flying away, Izaya quickly grabbed Shizuo and hugged him tight as he wrapped his wings around both of them, shielding him the best he could while Shizuo woke up with a start.

The sounds of rattling machine guns woke up the entire church quite rudely that morning for breakfast as Vorona shot the whole load of magazines straight into that dorm room.

"W-wait, wait! Vorona! I can explain!" Shizuo woke up abruptly when he heard his kouhai shout her battle cry but it was too late. The blond priest-to-be flipped over his bed, grabbed the confused Izaya and ducked as the feathers from his bedding flew and the clothes full of holes fluttered and fell dramatically.

When Vorona ran out of bullets and was about to reload, Shizuo shouted from the other side of his bullet ridden bed, "Wait! Vorona! He's with me!"

Sister Vorona stopped, her two semi-automatic machine guns still in her hands, already fully loaded as she had flipped the magazines in midair, her being an expert with guns of all types. She frowned only briefly, a rare shift of her normally emotionless face. "Negative. How do I know he's not charmed you, Shizuo-senpai?"

Shizuo carefully stood up with his hands up. "L-look. I don't have any bite marks, alright?" Shizuo tried to show that he had no bite marks on his body as Izaya got up too, whining loudly.

"Stupid bitch! She fucking ripped holes into this shirt! And look at my wings! I'm bleeding everywhere! Fucking silver bullets hurt like hell!" Izaya hissed unceremoniously as he rubbed at his wounds.

By now the entrance to the dorm room was packed with uninvited guests as people looked inside to see what was going on. And they all gasped as they saw Izaya spreading out his wings to show his wounds to Shizuo.

"A vampire!" they all shouted in unison as all thirty-or-so of them grabbed their weapons and locked their target ready to fire, making Shizuo facepalm.

"What's going on here? Huh? Izaya?" The good doctor adjusted his glasses once he was able to push through the crowds. "What are you doing here?"

"Shinra!" Izaya shouted all happily as if the wounds were surface scratches. He flung himself forward and hugged the man who looked clueless to the chaos around him. A tinge of jealousy rose in Shizuo's heart. No… not just a tinge, more of an immense surge of jealousy as Shizuo noticed how happily and readily Izaya greeted their mutual friend without a single shred of doubt.

"Alright, alright! What's going on here! Move aside!" one of the high priests shouted as the crowd parted. He looked into the room to see the bloody vampire they were searching for, along with a half naked priest and a doctor being hugged by the said vampire, which looked like a blatantly sacrilegious activity in the holy church.

"Alright! I demand an answer! Brother Heiwajima!" the head priest Kazamoto growled in his direction.

"I… I can explain…" Shizuo said meekly. And deep in his heart, as a pair of boxers filled with holes landed on top of his head, he truly hoped he could.

* * *

Shizuo sighed as he closed the heavy door. He had been scolded for several hours by all the head priests. Shizuo had wanted to go to them in the morning and present to them the tamed vampire, all freshened up, but that plan got ruined. Instead he had to explain that he had found Izaya around 4am in the morning when everyone was asleep and he hadn't wanted to wake anyone up or cause trouble, no sir he won't make this mistake again and yes sir, Izaya really is tamed and no sir, he'd make sure that Izaya won't cause trouble…

After the head priests clearly laid out the rules that Kasuka had also had to follow for Ruri and only after he signed all the paperwork, Shizuo was allowed to leave. And immediately as he stepped out of the council room, he heard some sisters screaming and sounds of bullets flying… and he knew Izaya had gotten into trouble again.

"That damn vampire! I told him to stay put in the room!" Shizuo growled as he ran towards the hallway where he heard the sound. He quickly looked around for the vampire, but he didn't see him. Shizuo walked over to the sisters and asked from a safe distance, "a-are you alright?" since Shizuo knew most people were just as wary of him as they were wary of vampires.

The women cried and mumbled something unintelligible. Shizuo growled as he followed his nose to find that pest.

"Flea! Where are you?! I told you to stay in my room!"

"But I was hungry~ And don't call me that, that's so degrading," came a whine on top of the ceiling. Shizuo looked up to see the vampire on top of the wooden loft where the soft colorful lights of the stained glass windows hid him from view.

"Get down here! Now!" Shizuo demanded angrily. They were lucky that no one was in the chapel hall else Shizuo would be in more trouble.

"I don't wanna~~" said the cheeky, sassy voice from above. Shizuo was sorely tempted to throw one of the benches up there and make the vampire fall. They were off to a rocky start. He needed to show that Izaya would obey him else he would have to kill the vampire. Why couldn't he understand that?! Shizuo was trying to protect him here!

"Come down here if you want to be fed, flea." Shizuo growled, "else you're not getting any tonight."

There was a flutter of wings as the vampire quickly dropped to the ground. "So not fair! Using food as blackmail! You shouldn't do that to those in need, Brother Shizu-chan~~" Izaya pouted as he walked over.

"What did you do to those sisters? You need to go and apologize." Shizuo frowned at the man who seemed to show no remorse for what he had done. He ignored that Izaya had called him by a ridiculous pet name.

Izaya shrugged. "I didn't do anything. They just yapped and yapped about dumb stuff until I came and then started screaming at me and pointing their goddamn g…"

"Don't swear in the name of the Lord!" Shizuo interrupted. "And that's why I told you to stay inside!"

Izaya bristled a bit, his eyes narrowing, "But it's boring! And I was hungry! You can't seriously have me locked up inside your stupid room for hours and expect me to not-"

"No, you will! Because I said so!" Shizuo growled.

The second time Izaya was interrupted he paused. His sharp eyes regarded Shizuo for a moment before he answered, "fine." Then seemingly obediently, he started walking towards Shizuo's room.

"And stay there until I get back." Shizuo ordered as he watched Izaya's back and his bristled wings acting like a bird with ruffled feathers the wrong way disappear into the hallways. He sighed. They really had a long way to go… Perhaps he should ask Kasuka how he got Ruri to obey him. At least he can always use his blood as the bargaining chip but Shizuo wasn't sure how long that would last. More than anything, they needed to get out of here. The priests, brothers and sisters were all nervous that there was another vampire walking about. Shizuo needed his next mission… fast. But the priests now had to redo their paperwork so that Shizuo could go on a mission appropriate for a vampire hunter and his pet… as they called him. Izaya just needed to stay put for few days, why couldn't he…

Then Shizuo paused. Izaya… had gotten hurt earlier this morning while protecting him. Izaya really did protect him.

'He hasn't… forgotten his promise…' Shizuo's eyes softened at that. He really should go and thank him but…

Shizuo sighed. It looked like he missed the chance. He wondered if Izaya was really okay, though he didn't see anything out of norm from the vampire…

The blond scratched his head. He had just way too many things to do right now to worry about a vampire. He would deal with Izaya later. For now, he needed to look into finding them a proper mission so they could leave this place. Fast. Before they both got in trouble again.

And before the priests consider Izaya a threat and try to eliminate him.

* * *

Izaya grumbled as he kept walking. He couldn't do this, he couldn't do that, stupid priest wanna-be acting all high and mighty, nya, nya, nya. Izaya made mocking faces of the little human who's not so little anymore as he walked towards the dorm hallway.

Suddenly, there was a hand that grabbed onto his mouth, muffling his potential scream before Izaya was pulled away from the main hallway into the dark corners where the shadows fell. Izaya was surprised at first but remained calm as he was slammed against the wall. He hissed as his eyes tried to adjust to the darkness to see his assailant.

"What now? Look, before you start firing your goddamn silver bullets at me, I'm…"

"You're Orihara Izaya. Yes, I know. In fact… we  _know_ each other … quite…  _intimately_ …"

Izaya stared quietly. He recognized that voice.

"I know you…" Izaya's eyes narrowed. Then he was roughly pushed up against the wall. Izaya bit his lips as he felt the hands touch and squeeze him between his legs.

"Then you know… you can't get in trouble… right? It would be… very bad for your…  _blond friend…_  if you're caught hurting me. So stay still and shut up."

Izaya's eyes narrowed as he felt the hand dip under his pants and touch him. His mind immediately took him back to the times he was forced to spend chained to the cement table as the human got on top of him as his vision blurred.

" _Are you sure… this is okay, Father?" The man with his hair slicked back said on top of Izaya. He hesitated despite his erection being quite eager. "I'm not going to hell with fornicating with the devil?"_

" _It's not fornication. It's an experiment," the man with grey eyes and serious face explained calmly as he stood along the sidelines along with several doctors quietly writing down their observations in a clinical manner. "We're trying to find out if… blood in an aroused state heals him faster than when it's not. Or perhaps it's just a preference thing, nothing to do with nutrients." The priest smirked, his cold eyes not quite smiling with him. "Don't worry. As a hunter, this would be a beneficial experience for you as well. You've… always bragged that you had your blood sucked, haven't you? Now you'll be able to explain how it feels thoroughly."_

Izaya moaned as the man with dark hood over his head continued to squeeze and press him against the stone wall… cold like the walls in the basement. He feels weaker, the memory and his vision blurring together, the images and words colliding as the trauma resurfaced with the trigger.

"Now you remember…" the man said in the darkness. He chuckled, "I remember your sweet moans all too well. It was the best month of my life, being able to fuck you every night in the name of… experimentation."

Izaya pants softly, trying to shrink… trying to run away from the images haunting his mind. But he couldn't… the trigger had set off the pandora's box as if the nightmares were real once more… even though he was clearly free now, his mind was still trapped inside that dark, stinky basement too fresh with the smell of blood and decaying fresh.

"Nnngh… no… s…stop…" Izaya muttered, trying to weakly push away. What was he trying to push away?

_Horada laughed uneasily as he turned to face the toothless and mangled vampire. He wasn't pretty anymore but something about those ruby colored eyes peeking through the blood bandages was enchanting still.. The charm of the vampire still remained strong despite how much they mangle him up. Izaya remained still seductive, alluring… and Horada licked his lips as he mustered up some courage._

_The young apprentice wanted him, the lust filling his black heart. He always had to sneak out to a cheap whore house in disguises for sex and now he finally had the opportunity for a good fuck, despite the fact that he was being observed and that the whore was a male… and a vampire at that._

_Horada took a deep breath, sticking his cut finger inside the mouth of the toothless vampire as he ripped off the monster's pants._

Orihara Izaya shuddered at his memory that flooded him as the assailant continued to touch him vulgarly now outside the basement. His limbs grew weak and his breath quickening up, his wings pressed hard against the cold stones of the church instead of the basement. But his mind couldn't make up its mind where he really was as the trauma over the years clouded his judgment.

Horada leaned forward to whisper into Izaya's ear, "I was sad when they said… I can't fuck you anymore. But I did enjoy… cutting you up later. That was almost as good… watching you squirm and scream… And now you've gotten even prettier… for me."

Izaya's eyes flashed as he suddenly whirled around and slammed the priest against the stone wall, his hand tightly clutching Horada's throat, choking him so he couldn't speak.

"Oh, I remember you alright. Brother Horada… they called you, wasn't it? I remember you all too well… you and your entire bloody lot." Izaya hissed as his hand squeezed around the neck as the brother clawed at him for oxygen. The vampire tried to shake off the foggy memory and the awful headache that lingered as he leered into the panic-stricken eyes of the apprentice hunter.

"Afraid? Aww… did you think I would be that easy? Thought you could blackmail me or threaten me into another quick fuck? Well… what if… they never found you…. What then? They couldn't possibly blame me without…. evidence… if I were to… crush your throat and drown you in a deep lake… miles and miles from here…" Izaya whispered seductively as he gazed into the dimming eyes. "It would be my pleasure, actually."

As Izaya was about to crush the neck, he heard a scream. He quickly turned to realize that another Sister had found him in a very compromising position. Izaya quickly let go of the coughing hunter and he flew out the window before they could catch him.

* * *

Shizuo stood still, wordlessly, clutching at his paperwork as Father Shiki glared down at him.

"Well? Do you have an explanation?"

".. N-no sir." Shizuo replied glumly. Just earlier, Shizuo had sighed in relief as he held onto the mission paperwork in his hands. He stayed in the mission control room for two hours, filling out forms so that they could hurry up the process and give him an assignment. As he was going to his dorm room however, he was abruptly stopped and told what had happened.

And now he was being scolded yet again at the vampire's second attempted attack in one day. Except this second one was much more severe.

"Haayuuhiihaaa! Huushuushkkk!" Horada tried to speak with his hoarse voice, pointing at the his neck. There were indeed claws and indentations of the vampire… and several witnesses that Izaya had tried to feed on him. Shizuo winced at the bruise. Not because it looked painful, which it did, but he knew Horada was a perpetual liar. Izaya wouldn't have attacked him unless Horada had taunted him. Or so he thought.

"Father. Izaya…. I, I mean, the vampire wouldn't be attracted to other person's blood but me." Shizuo tried to argue.

"Well, that doesn't mean that the vampire still is addicted to his violent nature. Perhaps he doesn't need to feed his stomach hunger… but more of his innate nature to cause violence." Father Shiki smoothly bantered back. Shizuo gritted his teeth. He hated being told that it was an innate nature of anyone to seek violence… something he was told all his life. As if it was a destined element, a plausible explanation for everything.

"I swear, Izaya is tamed. I really don't think Iza…. I mean, the vampire would have attempted an attack if…"

"Huuaaahuuu liaaa!" Horada cried out.

Shizuo sighed. "No, Horada. I'm not calling you a liar. I'm just saying… maaaybe there was a reason to his… violence… rather than just because he wanted to." Then he looked at Father Shiki with imploring eyes, "Please. Give me one more chance. I'll prove with this mission that… he's completely tamed."

Father Shiki regarded the both of them gravely with his piercing grey eyes like those of a hawk.

"Why are you defending this vampire of yours…?" the priest asked. "How do we know he hasn't charmed you?"

'Not this again…' Shizuo thought to himself. Yes, everyone knew the powerful charming effect of the vampire. He himself even felt it multiple times. It wasn't that Izaya was exceptionally beautiful. It didn't even seem to matter what the person's sexual orientation was… just something about these vampires… naturally pulled humans to them, like magnets.

"I can't prove that, I admit. But I promise you results from the missions. We will kill vampires. Together. That should prove our loyalty… and usefulness in the long run, right?"

Father Shiki just 'hmmed,' in response then waved his hand at Shizuo. "You may leave."

Shizuo blinked at first then sighed in relief as he turned to go.

"But. I expect results, Brother Heiwajima."

Shizuo swallowed hard and bowed once before leaving.

As the footsteps faded away, Horada stomped his foot in anger as he banged his hand on the desk in front of Shiki.

"Hwwwaaai?!" he yelled with his crushed throat. "Hwwai allooww?!"

But his voice was quickly cut off as the priest grabbed him by the throat and slammed him against the wall.

"You fool…" Shiki whispered to the frightened hunter with a low voice just above a whisper. "Who told you to go fuck him…? I told you to eliminate him without anyone  _seeing_. Now that damn hunter  _knows_  that the vampire isn't safe in the church… you won't get a clean shot at him anymore."

"Hnngh! Mmngh!" The young apprentice panicked as the pain rippled through him, trying to explain something but he couldn't. Shiki rolled his eyes at the pathetic hunter and dropped him to the floor, the young man coughing and wheezing.

"We'll just have to hope that the cursed being won't talk about our experiments… else, I'll have your head next to silence you."

Horada looked up frightened and graveled in what wheezing voice he had that he would  _neeever_  talk about the experiment in the basement with anyone. Neeever.

Shiki kicked at the man and told him, "Leave my presence."

Horada crawled out in a hurry, slamming the door behind him. The priest sighed as he looked out the window to try to cool his anger.

"Having trouble cleaning the house?" said an amused voice in the darkness.

"Shut up." Shiki growled back at the man dressed in a red chasuble.

"Shall I intervene for you?" said the other priest who bore a large scar over one eye that he partially hid with a monocle.

"No. I can take care of it. Perhaps we'll be needing this vampire in the future… I'll let him run around for a bit. But in the end, he'll have to come back to us." Shiki smirked.

"You sound so sure of yourself." The man stepped out of the darkness to wrap one arm around the waist of the priest in white. Shiki slapped the hand away.

"Akabayashi. Behave yourself." Shiki scowled as he turned to face the red priest. Akabayashi just chuckled as he stepped back, leaning on one cane.

"Of course, Shiki-no-danna. Whatever you say. I look forward to… what you have planned… for those two."

* * *

Shizuo was in a foul mood. Everyone stepped aside as they saw the dark brooding expression of the hunter as he marched down the hallway.

Shizuo yelled as he kicked the door open. "Shinra! Shinra! He's here isn't he?! He wasn't in my fucking room!" No he wasn't jealous… not at all. He was just fucking pissed off that Izaya had disobeyed him again!

Shinra quietly walked over to Shizuo, wiping the blood from his hands. "Oh, you just missed him. He flew out the window… when he heard you yelling." Shinra shrugged. Shizuo growled, his hands balling into fists but unable to find the appropriate target. Though he had to admit, he was always impressed by how Shinra didn't seem to be scared even when the blond was at the epitome of rage.

"Would you like some coffee?" Shinra asked instead as he turned around to get Shizuo a cup.

"Where did he go?!" Shizuo asked instead of answering Shinra's question. The doctor just poured himself a cup, a white mug with a weird hand drawing of himself… with the word 'Shinra' written on it. He turned around, leaning against the cabinet and sipped it quietly, waiting for Shizuo to calm down a notch before answering.

"Where do you think he'll go?"

"How the hell should I know?!"

"Why not? He's your vampire, right?"

"He's  _NOT MY…_ " Shizuo's voice trailed off. W-wait, he was his vampire now. He sighed. "L-look. I need to find him. So tell me where he is."

Shinra shrugged. "What would you do once you find him?" Shizuo rolled his eyes.

"That's none of your busine-"

"No. It's not. But did you know why he came here first?"

Shizuo blinked when Shinra cut him off sharply. Shinra rarely did that… actually… Shinra only did that when he was angry. Now it was Shizuo's turn to be caught off guard.

"Erm… he likes you?"

"Shizuo. If he really wanted to chat with someone, he'd charm a farm girl or a milk lady down in another town. Why would he come straight to me?" Shinra's sharp questions made the young hunter think for a bit. But no matter how often he turned it in his head, Shizuo had no idea…

Shinra sighed, "Alright. Let's turn it around for a second. Why would  _you_  normally come to me? You're not exactly a chatty person either."

"Well I come when I…" Shizuo paused. Then he continued slowly, "when I need treatment."

"Right. Izaya was riddled with silver bullets. You made him sit in his room for four hours straight instead." Shinra bluntly told him as he sipped his coffee. Now Shizuo flushed with embarrassment.

"I… well… I thought…" No, Shizuo didn't think. He had totally forgotten all about it. Even after Izaya had shown him his wings full of holes and all bloody…

"O-once I feed him my blood, he would heal up so…" Shizuo stammered. He was thinking of Izaya's safety!

"Huh. How strange. Wonder why you didn't feed him then before you left?"

"I was ordered to the council room to be scolded for the mess that he….!"

"Sister Vorona's mess actually. Not that I blame her either. She has fast reflexes… probably the fastest reflexes in the entire church. Still not really Izaya's fault was it?"

Shizuo looked down sheepishly at that. "O-okay fine. I'm at fault for that. So where is he now?" Shizuo tried to change the subject, quite frustrated he was being scolded all day… despite trying to protect this damn vampire.

"Did you know Izaya is claustrophobic?" Shinra switched the subject on him again as he blew on the coffee before sipping some more.

"H-he what?" Shizuo blinked again.

"Claustrophobic. You know, when you're afraid of being in a tight, closed spac-"

"I know what that means, Shinra! I'm not stupid!" Shizuo crushed the chair near his hand.

"Oh. Right, of course you're not stupid. Of course, you'd realize this right away. After all, you know all about the fact that the vampire was trapped in a small room for fifteen or so years without ever being able to leave it while he was being tortured every few hours or so… surely you knew all about it, yes. So why did you tell him to stay in your bullet riddled room for four more hours without telling him when you'll be back? Didn't think that might trigger something?"

"I…." Shizuo stammered again. He was starting to realize how little he knew about the vampire. "H-he didn't tell me that he…!"

"Shizuo." Shinra frowned, cutting him off again. "Did you ever, once in your life, tell me your fears?!"

Shizuo stopped.

Not once has Shizuo ever told anyone of his fears. Not to Father Tom, not to Kasuka his own blood brother, not to Sister Vorona and not to Shinra, his two best friends. And of course, never to the confessional stands to the random priest who was listening in.

Shizuo could feel his heart sink like a hard heavy lead in the ocean. Shinra was right. Why would.. the vampire trust him? Shizuo knew all about trust issues. Actually, more than a trust issue, to him, it was just that Shizuo didn't want to show how weak he was to his enemies and didn't want to disappoint his friends…

Ah… his enemies. Izaya was surrounded by his enemies in this church. Even if Shizuo had offered his hand, there was no way that the vampire could trust him so easily…

"And… he told… you?" Shizuo asked with a frown, looking at Shinra as if he had betrayed him.

"No." Shinra smiled a bit sadly. "Just like you never tell me your problems, he doesn't either. I actually don't know if he's claustrophobic. It's just a theory. Just like it's my theory that you have nightmares about vampires now and then. Ah, that's only because I had nightmares too when my mother died, just my conjectures on the matter and nothing more. Don't worry, I don't assume anything even if I theorize unless I have further proof. Let's just say, I'm more careful and observe… and act carefully depending on a list of analysis." Shinra seemed less angry now that Shizuo was seeing what he was saying.

"He came in here rather shaken. At first I thought it was from the allergic reactions of the silver but it appeared it was something more. I think someone attacked him, though I only saw the silver bullet wounds. I took out the bullets and treated him the best I could to speed up his healing process. Which by the way, earlier about the feeding blood thing. Don't you think it's kinda cruel to have him stay in pain just because he can heal up eventually? Sure it wasn't fatal wounds but pain is pain. The man had enough of pain, don't you think?"

Shizuo frowned at Shinra's words. Because he was right. The vampire did have enough pain in his life… probably…

W-wait, did Shinra just call Izaya, a  _'man'_?

"After he got his treatment I think he must have felt better. He mostly sat here complaining about you," Shinra smirked at Shizuo. "I won't exactly tell you what he said since privacy of my clientele is important to me but… he's not quite happy with you."

"Well, I tried my best," Shizuo huffed as he sat down in the chair which the handle he had just crushed.

"I'm not saying you didn't. I think Izaya just needed to vent. Which is why I'm saying that I think he was rattled up quite badly early… something that wasn't Sister Vorona related. Remember, Izaya has enemies in this church, those who had tortured him for years walking around in this very church. He really doesn't have anyone else here except you and me you know. And that's really not much at all considering he is a vampire of an ancient family lineage, not like Ruri-chan who's only ¼ of a vampire. He probably grew up like a high noble with servants and maids. He has polished etiquette and poise despite his playfulness, did you notice?"

"O-of course I did," Shizuo muttered. Actually he didn't. He still couldn't tell what was a proper etiquette anyway and didn't bother to learn how to deal with the stuffy nobles. He let someone else deal with that. Besides all the stuffy proper people looked down on him which made Shizuo break things… causing more problems. It was always easier for Shizuo to avoid them altogether. Hence why he was clueless to proper etiquettes, or so he told himself. He never thought he would need them anyway.

Shinra just smiled knowingly but did not comment. Shizuo was glad for that, though now he was realizing just how wise Shinra actually was sometimes.

"It was our first time talking Shizuo. We've never talked while he was locked up in the basement… our only 'conversation,' if you could call it that, was eye to eye contact once in awhile. I don't know anything about him just like you. I just deduced some elements from my observations in which I have no idea if I'm actually right or wrong."

"Well, I think you're fairly close…" Shizuo admitted. Especially since Shinra got it right about his nightmares.

"Thanks. But what I'm trying to say is, I know no more than you. You should really give him a chance and listen before you point fingers at him, that's all. You of all people should know what that feels like."

That was true. No one really listened to him. Everyone blamed him for everything. From a broken chair that another kid broke all the way to crop failures that season. Shizuo knew how that felt, when no one would listen his side of the story, the whole truth. It was exactly that reason why he had given up even telling anyone anything.

"So back to the same question, Shizuo. Where do you think he'll go?" Shinra asked calmly, coming back to the question from the beginning.

Shizuo nodded solemnly as he got up. He understood now that it was his responsibility to understand Izaya. Finding him was just a start of a long journey, but it was Shizuo's duty. And he had an idea where the vampire would hide.

* * *

"Hey, Izaya?! You there?!" Shizuo shouted up at the tall holy tree in the cemetery. It was the place they met… and where Shizuo had first found Izaya. The cemetery was one place that most people dared not go unless they had to… so it was a quiet secluded area. Which was why Shizuo had always ran here to quietly cry or brood about things after being bullied.

"Look… I… umm… I'm sorry about…" Shizuo frowned. What could he say? That he was sorry told Izaya to stay in his room? That he didn't feed him when Izaya said he was hungry? That Horada probably… attacked him? Shizuo didn't actually think ahead about what to say at all… as he usually thought of something at the spur of the moment.

"Err… that is, I'm sorry that I…"

"Oh, just shove it. I can't stand looking at you. You're embarrassing me," came the reply and the sound of fluttering wings. Izaya fell down a few branches lower to sit on one just out of Shizuo's reach. "Fine, fine. I'll go to your damn room. Why can't I just stay out of you human's sight for few hours?! Do you guys seriously want to put a strict surveillance on me twenty-four seven?!"

"Ah, no, no. Th-that's not it. Or rather, that's why I'm here…" Shizuo scratched the back of his head apologetically. "If… if you want, you can stay here. You don't need to… stay in my room or anything…"

Izaya frowned as he looked down at the human with a change of heart. "I thought you'd be angry. You kicked that door down at Shinra's with quite a force…"

Shizuo flushed and looked away, "S-sorry about that…" he muttered.

Izaya tilted his head suspiciously, "What do you want then? Surely you came for something if you don't want me back in your room."

Shizuo thought about it. He couldn't… ask what Horada did. After all, whenever Father Tom had asked him what the bullies did to him, Shizuo would always lie and reply, "Nothing…" He knew this more than anyone else. Shizuo swallowed hard.

"I… came to feed you."

Izaya blinked in disbelief. "Really?"

"Y-yeah… I mean… your wounds…"

There was a flutter of wings as Izaya dropped to the ground level at the word 'feed.' "Oh, rubbish! I'm not that hurt. See? Shinra fixed me up pretty well!" Izaya looked cheery as he spun around to show his wings. Shizuo couldn't help but smile. Either Izaya was a really great actor or… he picked himself right up very easily. No one would believe that the man was locked up for years being tortured…

But Shinra wasn't the type to make up lies regarding the gruesome torture.

Even if it was hard to believe right now, Shizuo did remember the stank of the basement… the gaping holes of decaying flesh this vampire once had just a week or so ago down in that cold cell.

"Does that mean you don't need my blood?" Shizuo smirked teasingly.

"OH HELL NO! I want my food!" Izaya hissed as ran up to him and clung to his arm. Shizuo chuckled. They probably had a long way to go in terms of being completely honest with each other but… first, Shizuo had to trust him. After all, Izaya did try to save him that morning when Vorona had fired at them. And if Izaya didn't want to talk about what had happened between him and Horada… why he had attacked him… Shizuo wouldn't ask. He had a gut feeling that Izaya must have done it out of self defense, just like Shizuo had done in the past against Horada. It was understandable that Izaya would never tell anyone the truth if he was certain that no one would believe him. Same went with not wanting to show how hurt he was or showing his weakness while surrounded by his enemies. These things, Shizuo knew all too well. He had been there. Though he admitted, the way Izaya hid his pain was the opposite of how Shizuo had hid his, so Shizuo wasn't able to realize it sooner. But after hearing Shinra, Shizuo could see it more clearly.

"Alright, but remember. No sucking. You only drink the drops falling from my finger." Shizuo reminded the vampire. And as expected, Izaya hissed in defiance. "What?! What am I, your pet?! That takes too long!"

"No buts. It's a rule." Shizuo remained firm but not angry.

Izaya still looked unsatisfied. "What, more rules?!"

The young blond sighed, "You know why." And Shizuo cut his finger and let the blood drip. "Drink… else it'll just go to waste."

"W-wait, wait! Dammit, I wasn't ready!" Izaya quickly got on his knees to drink the falling droplets of blood. Shizuo does note that the vampire was quite obedient. He may complain, actually he complained a lot, but at the end Izaya did follow his orders.

Shizuo felt ashamed that he had responded back in anger earlier to the vampire's teasing. Izaya was just hiding his wounds.

"Hey flea…" Shizuo said as he watched Izaya roll out his tongue to catch the blood.

The blond smirked when Izaya responded with an expected scowl, "I told you not to call me that."

"Right, when you stop calling me 'Shizu-chan,'" Shizuo scoffed right back. He could get used to their relationship. He cleared his throat and continued.

"Uhh. So I came to also tell you that… we got our first mission."

"Really?!" Izaya eyes brightened, half getting up in excitement but quickly getting back on his knee to catch the drops of blood. "Thank god, I was about to go crazy staying here. Fuck, I need a change of scenario. No offense but your church is fucking boring as hell. Granted, I was stuck in the basement for most of those years but."

Shizuo did his best not to laugh at him. The vampire could be cute… when he wanted to be. Either that or it was that magical charm working its way, the young hunter couldn't tell. The hunter was impressed that the raven could even make a joke out of his… possible trauma.

"Thought you were a heathen, didn't believe in gods." Shizuo teased him lightly as he squeezed his finger for more blood.

"Oh hell no. We know there's a god. Doesn't mean I like the guy." Izaya shrugged, licking his lips before going back to his feeding. "So when are we going?"

"Well… tomorrow morning I thought would be best. We can have a good night's rest and…" Shizuo paused a bit. "If you want… I can bring blankets and you can sleep out here…." Remembering that Izaya might be claustrophobic.

"Oh for chrissake, no! Why would I deny myself of nice soft bed and sleep in some tree trunks?! Though your bed is far from soft, it's shit better than the cement I had to lay on for years." Izaya rolled his eyes.

Shizuo blinked in surprise. W-wait… wasn't… Izaya… claustrophobic? Was Shinra wrong? Or was Izaya hiding it again… Shizuo couldn't figure it out.

"Okay then. You can have the bed and I'll sleep on the floor?" Shizuo offered. Last night was a blur. He had felt faint after Izaya had drunk a lot of his blood and he only remembered waking up in his bed with Vorona raining bullets.

"Shizu-chan, your place is freaking cold. I don't understand you priests and lack of love for heat and comfort. I'd rather use you as my thermal blanket and share the cramp bed." Izaya sighed as if Shizuo's generosity was in actuality more of a pain.

"Dammit louse, I'm just trying to be nice here," Shizuo muttered frowning at the fact that Izaya kept declining every attempt at the blond trying to be nice for once.

"Yeah well, think it through first before you offer any more of your 'nice' things." Izaya wiped his lips as he got up, having his fill. Shizuo felt hurt but it was true. Everything Shizuo had thought was going to be for the best for Izaya, the vampire had other ideas instead. They really needed to work on this… communication. It didn't help that Shizuo never felt the need to… communicate properly with anyone before. It would be a challenge.

"Alright let's go to bed." Shizuo nodded as he started walking forward. Izaya watched for a moment before he called out, "hey."

"Yeah?"

"You're not angry?" Izaya asked again, still frowning in confusion. "I crushed… your brother's throat."

"Ah…" So Izaya did feel guilty about it, Shizuo had thought as he walked on, not turning to face the vampire.

"Well, I did get scolded…" Shizuo started. Though he couldn't see, Izaya froze on the spot with baited breath.

"But I figured you did it out of self defense, right? It's alright, I got the upper priests to sorta understand. If you behave, I think they'll let you go." That was pretty farfetched from the truth, Shizuo knew. But he didn't really want to worry the vampire. Just… somehow, Shizuo wanted to protect him. Like how Father Tom did whenever Shizuo got into trouble as a child. He remembered how often Father Tom would go out there to find him every time Shizuo ran away after hurting someone. And after the Father found him, he never asked the crying boy what he did wrong.

All he did was say, 'come here Shizuo,' and gave him a hug. And little Shizuo would cry harder in his arms for awhile but all the pain would slowly melt away with that warm embrace. Never once did Father Tom ask what was wrong or what had happened. Because it never mattered. What mattered was that Shizuo was hurt and that Father Tom would always be there to lend a shoulder to cry on. That Father Tom was always at his side when the world was cruel and unfair.

Shizuo remembered that all too well, especially as he looked up at the big tree that had seen him cry over the years. He pat the trunk softly in a silent thank you before he walked up a bit. He turned around to look back at the stunned vampire in disbelief that Shizuo had managed to clear his name somehow.

"You're coming, right?" Shizuo asked, stretching out his hand.

"Stupid Shizu-chan," the vampire muttered as he walked forward slapping the hand away. "I'm not a baby. I'm 3,000 years older than you, remember that."

Shizuo smiled as he said, "Yeah, yeah flea." But he did notice that the vampire's pointy ears were flushed pink from behind.

* * *

Shizuo woke up early the following morning even if he didn't want to. He'd had a pretty good night sleep over all despite the cramp bed. He stretched and yawned as he shook the vampire who was curling up around his arm for warmth.

"Hey, wake up Izaya." Shizuo shook him a bit more as the vampire moaned, his wings fluttering sleepily. Shizuo learned that Izaya conveyed a lot of his true emotions with his wings. He smirked as leaned forward and whispered,

"Get up flea or no breakfast."

The vampire immediately jolted up with bloodshot eyes, "What! No fair!" Shizuo covered him his mouth to stifle a laugh. Wow this vampire really liked food. Granted he was probably not a glutton from start but from being conditioned for years…

"You know you only get fed once a day, get up you lazy bum." Shizuo flicked at the vampire's forehead.

"Ow! You lied to me?! Does a man of god lie this often? Ugh…" Izaya rubbed his forehead as he got up to get dressed.

Though Shizuo had woken up early enough not to disturb anyone, or rather just didn't want trouble from others, Vorona was already in the hallway collecting laundry for the day. Shizuo opened the door to give her his basket. Then she looked over at the vampire and said, "You. Give me yours as well."

Izaya blinked in the middle of getting dressed back into his slightly dirty clothes. "But… we're leaving now." The Sister nodded as she pulled out a new nicely cleaned outfit for the vampire in his size. "Wear this then."

Izaya starred at it at first before he quietly walked over to grab his new clothes. Then he looked at Vorona suspiciously. "… You're willing to clean a filthy vampire's clothes? Thought you hated vampires, for killing your parents," in an accusing tone.

"Izaya…" Shizuo said warningly. Then he quickly looked at the sister, trying to see if he could explain that it wasn't him who had not told Izaya about Vorona's past. It was probably Shinra, that damn bastard!

But Vorona said calmly to Izaya, "Your suspicion is wrongly directed. It wasn't you who killed my parents, right?"

Izaya looked a bit surprised at the unbiased answer. Then he looked at his clothes. They were really well tailored. Was it her way of apologizing? The vampire couldn't tell. Actually, Izaya was more surprised that this woman was able to figure out his measurements from split seconds of contact.

The vampire put it on. He liked how it looked on him. It even had a hole in the back for his wings. He smiled a bit as he flapped his wings comfortably too. All the while, Shizuo was trying to figure out how to apologize to Vorona and to tell her he really hadn't gossiped… that and he wasn't sure what to feel about Vorona's unnerving look at Izaya getting dressed in front of her.

"I will be washing this up by the time of your return." The young woman with her unique accent as she picked up the vampire's clothes to put it on top of the rest of the laundry.

"And you better come back with Shizuo-senpai to reclaim your clothes," Vorona said with a slight huff of pride.

Izaya smirked as he teased her. "Oh? Are you going to hold my clothes hostage?"

The blonde sister faintly smiled in challenge. "Negative. I will hunt you down personally if you do not return with Shizuo senpai in a timely manner."

Shizuo and Izaya froze at the threat. Izaya might not know her well but he believed her as he stepped back. "… got it. I'll be coming back for my nicely washed clothes  _safely_ with Shizu-chan. Affirmative." Izaya said with a nervous chuckle, even adding a tiny joke at Vorona's strange accent.

As they made their way out after their goodbyes. At the hallway to the main entrance, Izaya suddenly froze and quickly fled up to the ceiling. Shizuo turned and looked back and up at Izaya, confused as to what had frightened the vampire to make his hasty flight.

Just then, Father Shiki was there, heading out from the chapel after his morning prayers. Shizuo cursed inwardly as he was the man he didn't want to bump into the most. Then he bowed as the good Father approached him.

"Ah, leaving so soon," said the priest with grey eyes and white cloak.

"Yes Father. The earlier we… vanquish the vampires, the faster I can clear Izaya's name… I figured," there was more but Shizuo didn't feel the need to express the rest.

"That's wonderful. But remember you're going there to save the people as well as eliminating those who defy the name of the Lord."

"Aah… yes Father," Shizuo groaned inwardly. He really should work on how to word things better. He hoped what he said wasn't going to get them into more trouble.

Shiki noticed the young hunter's impatience and placed his hand on top of his head, "Go with my blessing, my son."

Shizuo closed his eyes in a short prayer and the Father walked away.

After Father Shiki was gone, Shizuo quietly called out, "Izaya? You there?"

There was a flapping of wings as the vampire came down hissing, standing right behind Shizuo as if the man could somehow shield him even further from the priest.

"You… don't like him?" Shizuo asked as he turned his head. The vampire just hissed some more and kept walking, not bothering to answer the blond hunter.

Shizuo made a mental note on the encounter. Izaya never feared other humans. In fact, he had boldly walked around the church a day earlier, scaring the sisters for fun it seemed.

" _Remember, Izaya has enemies in this church, those who had tortured him for years walking around in this very church."_

Shinra's words rang in Shizuo's ears. Could it be…?

Father Shiki was one of them?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note: I'm SO VERY SORRY for the late update. I was super busy with work x.x;;; And I have other projects lined up. But hey, at least I wrote you a 8,200+ words chapter update? ;_; I'll try to finish few more chapters faster. The fic is still in the beginning stages... i'm so sad someone thought i ended it with just chapter 3. I'm sorry i'm a slow updater... but i'll still update my fics. Im so sorry...
> 
> Thank you for still reading this ;_; and i'll try to write chapter 5 faster. It'll be their first mission! ahaha, can't wait! *hearts*
> 
> Thank you for all the reviews ;_;


	5. Chapter 5

“Shizu-chaaaaaaan~~~~~~ It’s too  _hoooooooot~_ ” Izaya whined loudly as he trudged behind the priest-to-be, with his heavy cloak and its hood covering his head.  
  
“Then take off the hood. It’s not like you’ll melt,” Shizuo growled. Izaya had been whining ever since they had stepped foot outside of their church. Which meant Shizuo had had to endure five straight days of complaints.  
  
“Which part about ‘skin allergy’ do you  _not_  understand?! I  _am a vampire!_  Meaning… ugh… never mind. I don’t understand whether you hunters are idiots or bird-brained. Probably something of both.”   
  
“Look, I get that your skin burns a bit in the sun, but not like it’ll kill you. You heal up fast enough.”  
  
“But it huuuurts~~~ And why can’t we travel by night?”  
  
“I told you: at night it’s too dark, and there are thieves. Walking around with a lantern is pretty much asking for thieves to come and mug you!” Shizuo was really losing his patience. “We’re almost there anyway.”  
  
“I hate you humans and your lack of better eyesight. Ugh, how sad it is for a superior being such as I to stoop to your lower levels,” Izaya kicked the dirt road as he pulled the cloak closer to hide his hands. The top of his hands and the tip of his nose were blistering red, Shizuo noted, but by morning - after a good sleep - the vampire would surely heal up as quickly as usual.  
  
And the feeding… happened every night.   
  
Shizuo shuddered as he quickly tried to forget what he had to do every night now; Izaya demanded to be fed at least once a day, after all. Though Izaya had finally cooperated in drinking the blood from the dripping finger, the man made such a show… it was as if the vampire  _knew_  it made him uncomfortable and purposefully made lewd faces…  
  
“Shizu-chan~ Earth to Shizu-chan~~ How much further until break??”  
  
Shizuo blinked as Izaya’s face came into his view.  
  
“Ah… why so early? It’s only noon.”  
  
“It’s  _because it’s noon_ , you degenerated homo sapien!!! It’s too hot!!!” Izaya hissed.   
  
The apprentice priest shrugged. “Go walk in the shade like you did yesterday.”  
  
“But it’s longer that way…” Izaya sagged his body and drooped as if he had no more energy. In the first two days, Izaya had hopped from tree branch to tree branch, quite obviously enjoying the outdoor freedom. That had soon grown tiresome, so he started walking under the trees… but considering the trees didn’t quite line up neatly next to the road, it was longer to walk in zigzag lines.

“I don’t know what you want,  _flea._  The faster you get there, the quicker you’ll get your shade. We are literally just a few hours walking distance away from the town so just deal with it.” Shizuo glared at the vampire with those charming carmine eyes, trying his best not to feel too sucked in by those glassy orbs reflecting his image back.  
  
“Ugh…!” With that the vampire had it. He dashed off to the side to rest under the shade.  
  
“Don’t go too far!” Shizuo shouted after him as Izaya already disappeared from his sight.   
  
He sighed. Part of him was worried that Izaya would just run away and deal with drinking disgusting blood the rest of his life but… so far, each night Izaya had always somehow come back to him. He needed to build this trust. He could tell that trust was essential with vampires, seeing as Kasuka treated Ruri with respect.   
  
Each time Izaya disappeared though… there was anxiety, yes, but also loneliness. The arguments, fighting and banter was annoying and sometimes the flea drove him up the wall. Several times, Shizuo would come close to punching the vampire in the face and breaking all his teeth so he would just  _shut up_ \-- but when Izaya just disappeared, Shizuo couldn’t ever help but feel that loneliness creep back, along with the worry that gnawed at his heart that Izaya would never return. So most of the time when Izaya came back, Shizuo treated him as nicely as he could… usually by feeding him. Izaya always came back and complained out of hunger, and by then Shizuo was so glad that he had returned, he would feed him – even if Izaya should have be fine with being fed once a month.   
  
Shizuo sighed to himself, bitter that he had lost his temper once more and sent the vampire running off to God knew where… He trudged along the dirt road by himself to his destination.  
  
It was just a few hours before sunset when Shizuo arrived at the small town. The villagers all welcomed him, though several of them noted how ‘young’ the hunter was. Shizuo could tell a lot of them were worried about his experience. The mayor gave him the most hospitable smile as he asked where his partner was since they were expecting two guests. Shizuo chuckled nervously and explained that his ‘partner’ had already gone out to scout the area for a bit. The men and women seemed to welcome that news as Shizuo was led to a fairly nice room in the inn, all lodging provided free of charge. Shizuo sighed as he leaned his gold cross against the wall and took off his travel clothes in exchange for a fitting robe. Fresh loaves of bread and hot onion soup were available for dinner, which he relished after all the cold stale breads he’d carried for the journey. The young apprentice was also careful to hide the cuts on his fingers just in case they might arouse suspicion. Most common men would not know about hunters and contracts with vampires - especially since the only known bond was Kasuka and Ruri - but Shizuo still didn’t want any more trouble.  
  
Izaya still had not returned after sunset. Shizuo frowned. Perhaps he should go outside and search for him, but Shizuo did not want to alert the local vampire that he had arrived. The villagers had already made enough of a commotion…Shizuo had to somehow catch the vampire unguarded. Usually, the best was during their feeding time. Tomorrow, Shizuo decided, he would ask around for the victims and see how often this vampire fed and laid traps. Today he was feeling quite fatigued from his travels.  
  
He sat on the straw bed and looked out the window, wondering if he should change into civilian clothes and go look for Izaya when…  
  
Shizuo saw a black smoke rising not far from the distance as well as the smell of something burning. He grabbed his cross and ran down the stairs as he heard the small town church bell ring wildly in alarm at the house burning at a distance.

It didn’t take long for Shizuo to follow the crowd and find the burning house.   
  
“Is there anyone in there?!” Shizuo shouted as he got closer to the house with towering fire. It looked like a normal, small family’s house. The fire was still going strong even as the men and women threw buckets of water and sand at it to stop it from spreading.  
  
“My baby girl! My baby girl is still inside!!” a woman was screaming towards the house as she broke into tears. Shizuo clicked his tongue and sighed. Of course, someone just  _had_  to be inside to make matters worse.  
  
The young blond grabbed a bucket of water and doused himself from head to toe. Before anyone could stop him, he kicked down the door and ran inside.  
  
“Hello! Anyone here?!” Shizuo shouted even as the wooden ceilings started to collapse. He coughed as the smoke grew thick in some areas. The walls were burning so hotly, he felt as if the dampness in his clothes had instantly evaporated. He cursed as he kept moving forward. He trusted his body and his inhuman ability to heal and his supernatural strength - they better be good for something!  
  
  
Shizuo ran up the burning stairs to the second floor, shouting, “Anyone in here?!”  
  
“What the hell did you run in here for, dumb Shizu-chan!”   
  
Shizuo whirled around at that familiar voice to meet the gaze of a furious looking vampire.   
  
“Where the hell have you been?!” Shizuo cursed.  
  
“I knew hunters and priests were  _idiots_  but I can’t believe you guys walk into obvious traps! I’m here to save your ass! Now come on!” Izaya grabbed Shizuo’s arm and tried to pull him - except Shizuo was stronger than the vampire and refused to budge.  
  
“I’m not going anywhere without that girl!” Shizuo then narrowed his eyes at Izaya with a suspicious look. “Did you… burn this place?!”  
  
“What?! Of course not! That other vampire did you idiot! We can smell the damn holy waters from you guys from miles away! I can’t believe you walked into the town without changing!” Izaya turned and hissed, very offended by such accusation when he was trying to save the human.  
  
“Then why didn’t you tell me you could smell me from miles away!” Shizuo shouted angrily.  
  
“Well I thought you knew?! And that you’d change clothes before you walk in to the town? You might as well ring the church bell while you’re here! Anyways, you’re that vampire’s main target, so I need to get you out of here…!” Izaya tugged again when the wall started to crumble under the pressure of the fire, and both of them could hear a girl crying. 

  
Shizuo began shouting, “Hello?! Is someone there?!” and ran towards the voice. Izaya cursed softly, chasing after him while coughing with the smoke thickening upstairs.  
  
Shizuo found the little girl in the nursery room; she looked to be only about six or seven years old. He held her close.   
“There, there… we’ll get you out. Don’t worry…”  
  
The girl began crying harder. “I can’t… I can’t leave without my Hiccups!” She hiccupped in the most comically timely manner - in the most un-comical situation, too, Izaya noted.   
  
“Hiccups?” Shizuo looked down at the crying girl in confusion.  
  
“M-my cat, Hiccups. I can’t… I can’t find him!” she wailed even louder. Izaya rolled his eyes.  
  
“Who cares about some feline! Go buy another one. Or go catch one in the forest, there’s plenty of wild cats arou…” Izaya trailed off as the girl cried even harder and Shizuo sent a glare for him to shut up.  
  
“Izaya, you go down there with the girl. I’ll stay to find the cat.”  
  
“Are you nuts?! The damn cat probably ran away already!”  
  
“No he didn’t!” the girl insisted. “He was right here with me! The whole time, comforting me! …Until the wall collapsed and you guys came in to the room…”  
  
Izaya groaned and Shizuo sighed. 'There goes that excuse...' Shizuo thought.

“Take the girl and go. If the fire burns your cloak…” Shizuo did not finish the rest of the sentence, not wanting the girl to hear that Izaya was trying to hide his pointy ears, obviously vampire-like pale skin and sharp fangs. Not to mention his gigantic wings tucked under that bulky cloak.  
  
“Fine, fine,” Izaya grabbed the girl roughly, practically dragging her. “You better find the damn beast fast!”   
  
And with that, the vampire took off.  
  
Shizuo felt drained as he surveyed the burning walls. He didn’t have much time.   
  
“Here, kitty, kitty, kitty…” Shizuo felt ridiculous treading softly around a crumbling house and trying to find a cat – it could have been any cat. Maybe he should have specifically asked what color it was.   
  
“Come on out kitty. I won’t hurt you…”  
  
“Oh, I don’t know about that…”   
  
Shizuo glanced up at the man’s voice in surprise, one hand holding onto the gold cross on his back. A cloaked figure sat on the wooden ceiling beams, smirking down at him. Shizuo scowled as he noted the crimson eyes that seemed to sparkle as it reflected the fire around them.  
  
=+=  
  
  
“Oh, my baby honey!!!” the woman grabbed the young girl and wailed loudly, clutching tightly onto her. Izaya sighed as he looked back at the burning building. He should really go back…  
  
Just as he turned, one of the men grabbed Izaya’s hand and thanked him for saving his daughter. Izaya blinked in surprise, a bit caught off guard. “Ah… Not a problem.”   
  
The mayor was present, and bowed to give his gratitude. “Thank you so much, sir. You aren’t from around here… Are you perhaps…?” The mayor gestured, looking expectant for an answer.  
  
“Ah, I’m with him…. the… apprentice priest, I-I mean, the hunter Heiwajima Shizuo…” Izaya fumbled. What kind of honorifics did people usually give to Shizu-chan anyway? Izaya didn’t actually know.  
  
“Ahh, I presumed as much. Thank you so much. We had hoped that you two would take a good rest before meeting the victim, but it seems God has His ways…”  
  
Izaya felt a chill run down his spine. “What did you say?”  
  
Izaya’s eyes widened as he looked at the young girl he’d saved. She was still crying and clinging onto her mother. The mayor repeated himself, but Izaya no longer heard him. His eyes zoomed in on the young girl’s neck.  
  
There were two distinct fang marks on the side of her nape.  
  
Izaya swore as he flung himself in a hurry back towards the building.  
  
‘Goddamn it! It’s the cat! It was the damn cat all along!!!’ Izaya’s cursed as he worked himself through the debris, trying to find the hunter. He should have known! Izaya should have figured it out faster. Of course it was the cat. The vampire was a shape shifter! Why hadn’t he figured it out earlier?! He needed to tell Shizuo before the damn vampire changed his form again!

  
  
=+=

  
“Flea?” Puzzled, Shizuo stared at the vampire on the ceiling. He then grew angry. “What the hell are you doing?! I told you to take the girl back outside!”  
  
“I did,  _Shizu-chan~”_ ” Izaya jeered at him. Shizuo scowled. Sure, Izaya liked teased him, but actually scoffing him down with such haughtiness - he had not done that before. It was always somewhat playful, and never in a threatening manner.   
  
But right now, that vampire was overflowing with deadly intention. Shizuo could feel shivers going down his spine.  
  
“So that’s it? You’re going to give up our contract? So you really burnt this building down and planned to trap me here and kill me? If you wanted to kill me, why didn’t you just do it earlier?” Heart heavy, Shizuo sighed and fingered his gold cross.   
  
He’d known it was all too good to be true… to believe in his vampire.  
  
Izaya remained silent, seemingly absorbing what Shizuo had just told him. He then laughed, his hooded form shaking.   
  
“Well, come down and fight! Aren’t you hot in that cloak? Might as well spread your wings a little, if you plan to kill me. I’m not going to go down that easily.”  
  
Shizuo growled, slamming his gold cross down onto the floor. The house moaned under the pressure. “I’m going to take you down with me.”  
  
“I don’t need to come down to your level to kill you~” Izaya smirked as he pulled out his crossbow from his back and pointed.  
  
Wait… crossbow???  
  
“What, I’m not even worth your magic? You actually went and bought that behind my back?!” Okay, that actually hurt Shizuo’s pride a bit. He grew pissed. “After witnessing the power of my cross, you think a little crossbow is enough to take me down?!!!” His grip would have normally crushed a log, but the gold cross held its form.  
  
Izaya seemed to hesitate, confused at the hunter’s words. Seeing what was, perhaps, his chance, Shizuo took a deep breath to try to reason this out. “Come on, Izaya. Are you going to break our contract so easily? I know… I’m not much…” Shizuo stumbled on his words even as the room grew hotter and the wood burned even brighter. He knew he had nothing to offer to this vampire besides his sweeter tasting blood. “But you swore to protect me. Was that oath meaningless to you?”  
  
“Well…” Izaya seemed to hesitate too, as Shizuo clung to silence. Then Izaya smirked back, “Maybe I just wanted you to taste something sweet before I crush you.” Although Izaya was too far away for Shizuo to see, he could still make out that sadistic grin.  
  
“IIIIIIZAAAAAYAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!”

Shizuo screamed, twirling his golden cross above his head. He then threw it at the vampire in anger. The vampire skipped to the next beam, dodging it easily. Shizuo cursed. He had planned to try to throw the cross high enough to invoke the seal, but completely neglected the possibility that Izaya would just hop to the adjacent beam… and now the cross was embedded to the ceiling.  
  
“Too bad Shizu-chan~ Now, die!” Izaya aimed his crossbow, cloak fluttering…  
  
Shizuo blinked.  
  
Wait… no wings? How come… Izaya had no wi-  
  
Just then, a large golden seal appeared right above Izaya’s head. The light burst forth and crushed Izaya to the ground with a loud boom!  
  
“F-fuck, what the…!” Izaya spluttered blood as the beam of light immobilized him for a bit.   
  
“Izaya?!” Despite everything, Shizuo ran up to him to see if he was alright, but…  
  
Another Izaya stepped on Izaya’s head with his boots.  
  
Wait, what?!  
  
Two Izayas?  
  
The second Izaya yanked off the hood of the first Izaya and Shizuo blinked as he noticed that… the first Izaya did not have the pointy ears or the wings of a vampire.   
  
“Stupid Shizu-chan! This one is a copy cat! Since I was wearing a hood, he couldn’t copy me perfectly and assumed I was a human, not a vampire. He hid up in the ceiling so you couldn’t make out his face in case he did his transformation spell incorrectly. Can’t you tell he wasn’t me?!” Izaya kicked at the guy in the stomach. The Izaya on the ground coughed and transformed back… into another man that Shizuo did not recognize.  
  
“That’s his true form. Probably.”   
  
“Hahaha… I can’t believe this… a hunter… working with a vampire?” the vampire coughed. “Is the world coming to an end?! Why is a  vampire working with a fucking hunter?!!”  
  
“Well, that’s none of your business, really.” Izaya quickly pulled out a wooden stake - pre-treated with holy water – that had been in one of the bags that Vorona had given him. He was careful to hold it only at the end where it hadn’t been treated with holy water, specifically so he could use it to support Shizuo in battle. He stabbed the vampire right in the heart.   
  
“Quick, exorcise him now!” Izaya shouted as he held him down. The vampire continued to scream and clawed at Izaya. Shizuo snapped out of his confused daze, and he fumbled in his pocket for his bible.  
  
“Are you serious?! You haven’t memorized it yet?!” Izaya hissed as he struggled with the resisting vampire in his grip.   
  
“Sh-shut up! Memorizing and studying isn’t my forte!”

  
Shizuo grumbled as he tried to look for the right page. “The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want… He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters. Uhh…” Shizuo frowned as he kept wiping the sweat with one hand, trying to read the small fine fonts.  
  
“HURRY!!!” Izaya shouted as the vampire under him continued to scream.  
  
“Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me…” Shizuo continued reading Psalm 23, uncorking the bottle of holy water and pouring it down the vampire’s mouth. Izaya cringed away as the vampire spluttered and screamed, clawing at his own throat now. Izaya almost pitied him, since he knew exactly how that felt like.   
  
“Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the LORD for ever. Amen.” Shizuo finished, closing the holy book. They both watched as the vampire screamed, and screamed, and then vaporized into thin air.   
  
Izaya wiped his forehead and sighed. Shizuo looked in near-wonderment at the exhausted vampire.   
  
“How did you… know…?” Shizuo asked curiously.   
  
Izaya just smirked. “I figured you’re the kind of guy who doesn’t like to condemn vampires to eternity by just killing them without reciting the holy lines. That is… if possible, anyway.” Izaya got up, dusting off his cloak. “Though, next time, I would be sorely tempted to just kill them off and send them to Hell for eternity. Ugh… We’re still in a burning building, so we gotta get out of here before  _we_  die.”  
  
Shizuo nodded. Izaya pushed Shizuo forward. “Let’s go, let’s go! I can’t have you die, you’re my food supply!”   
  
Shizuo chuckled softly. He was very relieved… not only that Izaya had come back to save him, but… that he didn’t break his oath. When that copy cat had mimicked Izaya, it was as if Shizuo’s worst fear had come true. If … it had come to that, Shizuo would… have had to kill Izaya. He knew he would have to if it came to it but…  
  
The blond hunter and the raven vampire ran through the burning building and down the stairs. Just as they came down the last step, there was a hard blast that threw them against the wall.  
  
Shizuo spluttered as he tasted splinters of wood in his mouth. Before he could open his eyes, he heard it.  
  
Flapping of wings…   
  
“Shit, there were  _two_  of them…” he heard Izaya mutter next to him. “Figured, they work in groups.”   
  
Before Shizuo regained full consciousness, Izaya flicked the back of his hand towards Shizuo, sending him flying and out the door. Then he used his magic to close the door before any of the humans could see what was going on inside.   
  
“I came here to sample on a delectable diet, but I couldn’t let a traitor flee so easily.” The vampire said haughtily as he remained afloat. “What, that apprentice pup put a leash on you with dog food and now you’re his pet?”  
  
Izaya slowly got up. Then he flung the heavy cloak aside to reveal his full wings as well. The cloak got in the way of battle and his flight, and it was better now that the humans wouldn’t see them. Izaya looked up at the arrogant vampire and just smirked.  
  
“Says the little kitty with a collar of its own? Since when did little pussy cats have collars anyway?” Izaya retorted back.   
  
The vampire afloat fumed angrily. “You don’t even know me you filthy third rate v-“  
  
“Ah, but I do know you. Don’t be calling me third rate when you’re a low-rate fifth class yourself…  _Gin._ ” Izaya leered up at the vampire, eyes a bright crimson and his wings spreading in their full length as he stood up tall.

The vampire named Gin paused and stared with widening eyes in recognition.   
  
“… I… I can’t believe it.  _Earl O-Orihara Izaya_? H-how are you still alive?!!!!” Gin nearly screeched. Izaya rolled his eyes, almost wishing he had slit that throat out first. Gin had only seen him at the palace in full glory with tail coats, shiny shoes and overall, a rather more elegant outfit, not these peasant clothes. It was no wonder he ahad hardly recognized him, but still. It was a tad annoying for Izaya; he didn't like being forgotten so easily. He would like to think he was more memorable.  
  
“It’s only been less than two decades. Why did all of you assume I’m dead?” Izaya shrugged nonchalantly.  
  
With that, Izaya did exactly what he decided he should have done. In a split second he was in the air, choking Gin’s throat before the other could utter another sentence.   
  
“I can’t have you members of the  _elite_  little group of Blue Squares going back to our leader of the Dollars explaining this little secret you just saw, you see? No hard feelings really. But I simply  _can’t_  have you return alive. Really, it was nothing personal.” Izaya made a dramatically sad and regretful face before he crushed the throat in his hand. Gin screamed silently as his throat was split in half and his spinal cord snapped.   
  
“I just  _can’t_  have our poor leader Mikado knowing my whereabouts, whether it be on Earth or in Hell. So, with that…” Izaya slammed the body to the ground, crushing Gin’s skull and his brain. The house shook, and Izaya looked up as the ceiling started to fall on him.   
  
Izaya cursed but he couldn’t leave yet. He had to make sure that this vampire was completely dead. He couldn’t risk him reviving…   
  
The raven thrust his hand into the half dead vampire’s chest and crushed the heart inside him.  
  
“Hurry and die already!” Izaya continued to smash the internal organs in a bloody haste to kill the vampire as fast as it could…. But before he could finish, the entire building started to collapse on itself…   
  
Outside the building Shizuo groaned as he came to. The loud noise had woken him up. The clamor along with the sound of the house collapsing made the hunter blink open his eyes, and he stared in horror as the full weight of the house crumpled down into a heap.   
  
“No! Izaya!! Izaya!!!” Shizuo shouted as he got up, stumbling. The villagers grabbed at Shizuo, telling him that it was pointless to try to save his partner - but Shizuo still struggled, screaming Izaya’s name.   
  
The flame only grew higher as the house burned to ashes throughout the night.   
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> \--
> 
> Author's note: Gin is a durarara novel only character. He's in Blue Squares like Aoba and Gin is the one who's jealous that Aoba has two girls (Orihara Mairu and Kururi, Izaya's twin sisters). Aoba had frequently used Gin in various times in the novel including keeping an eye on Mikado :3
> 
> There's also seem to be a small confusion here. I did NOT copy my story from a doujin. Yes I do know that there is a doujin with a shota Shizuo who grows up to be a priest and a vampire Izaya. If you check the time stamp, I posted my story before the doujin was published/scanned. It's not surprising that there are others who have similar ideas. The characters of Priest Shizuo and Vampire Izaya are from the official lottery prize art for October 2012. (Please google Durarara!! Ani-Kuji Ver.4: Special Halloween (October 2012)) or check out http://nomimushi.tumblr.com/post/32963430329/durarara-ani-kuji-information for more info. Thank you.
> 
> Thank you for still reading ;_; i'm so sorry i update slower now.


	6. Chapter 6

Last night was a blur- a hazy memory of throwing pails after pails of water even once all the villagers had given up several hours into the night. But even once the fire was finally out, Shizuo did not sleep, instead working with just a torch light as he picked up burnt wooden beams, some still the size of his height and triple his weight as he threw them clear and away - digging at random spots in his panic. The villagers were rather surprised by his seemingly supernatural strength but due to the remoteness of the village, most of them just concluded that all vampire hunters must naturally be that strong due to their training to fight supernatural beings such as the vampires.

As he worked Shizuo called out for Izaya, his voice becoming so wretched and pitiful as the night wore on that some villagers shook their head and let out a deep sigh - whispering to themselves that it must have been the young hunter’s first ‘loss’ of his partner and that was why he couldn’t seem to let go of the fact that his ‘partner’ was probably dead.

Some sympathetic ones came by to tell him that it would hurt more if he found his partner’s burned body, that instead he should just let go. The villagers promised that they would then work together in the morning light to find him but Shizuo did not listen, the man only continuing to jump at random places as he dug here and there. He tried to concentrate near the entrance but he figured if Izaya had a fight with a vampire… they could be buried anywhere. Not to mention, he had to hurry - he didn’t have the ‘time’ to wait until the villagers wanted to help. Unbeknownst to them, Shizuo knew that Izaya had a high chance of being alive… as long as he was given his blood quickly enough.

 

By dawn, everyone had given up and gone to bed, the family of the burned house given a temporary refuge at the inn. Shizuo, however, continued to dig and dig, now with more precision as the bigger logs were removed. He tried to dig more methodically, his anxiety clutching his heart more than the initial panic. He still called Izaya’s name, hoping against hope that the vampire would somehow respond back.

‘Please…. Izaya…. Come back to me.’

Shizuo begged in his heart again and again as he scraped with his bare hands, not caring that the still smoldering wood burned him. Izaya would have had it worse. Izaya had suffered worse than this, he told himself. This burn was nothing, the pain of bending his back for hours is nothing and the hoarse voice was nothing…. nothing compared to having holy water funneled through…. He rubbed his tired eyes with sooty hands as he continued his search.

By morning some came to see if they could help but most saw the debris and shook their heads and left. There wasn’t even a scrap of furniture that could be restored so they knew that there was no way a human could have survived such a destruction.

Around noon, Shizuo cried out as he finally found a charred hand. He dug in haste and removed the rough beam out of the way to reveal a heavily burned face. Shizuo didn’t recoil in horror despite the gore as he quickly placed his head near the mouth for signs of breath and his hands fumbling for any pulse around his neck.

“S-Shizu… chan?”

Shizuo turned to look into those half opened carmine eyes, confirming that it was indeed Izaya and he was alive, if barely. The vampire looked weak, of course, yet his eyes conveyed that Izaya seemed relieved to see him.

“Ha…. haha…!! Why you little freaking flea!” Shizuo cried out endearingly in his own relief as he pulled the vampire close for a quick embrace before he was groping for his rune dagger. He slit his finger to drip the blood down Izaya’s lips but when he turned back to the vampire, Izaya’s tired eyes had closed, his expression relaxed. Shizuo’s heart practically stopped as he quickly checked for pulse again. Izaya was still alive… but he had fainted.

“Did you find him?!”

Shizuo almost jumped out of his skin as he saw a villager calling to him in the distance. Shizuo realized he had stopped searching and was crouching down… of course that would make it appear that he had found what he was looking for.

“A-ah! Well, yes! I mean…!” Shizuo scrambled, frantically trying to think of an answer. What would Shinra do? What would Shinra _do?!_ Shizuo wracked his brains trying to think of an answer in a hurry as the villager yelled in whooping joy and ran over, distance closing fast. He couldn’t have the villager come close and notice the wings or the pointy ears and he definitely couldn’t have them see him feed the dying vampire blood in public!

He quickly took off the cape and wrapped it around Izaya as he pulled him out of the debris. As he struggled, Shizuo noticed…. another burnt husk buried near his vampire. He blinked as he noticed that it was another vampire… his fangs obvious despite the bad burn and his throat and skull were crushed. As Shizuo pushed away more rocks and debris to free Izaya, he noticed that the other unknown vampire’s chest was ripped out.

“I can’t believe… you killed the other vampire while you were burning….” Shizuo couldn’t help but chuckle in half disbelief, feeling a fierce sense of pride that Izaya really kept his words. He could have just flown away but no, Izaya had stayed behind to make sure that all the vampires were killed; vampires, which were of ‘his’ species. And he killed them to protect ‘his’ enemies, the humans.

To protect his oath with Shizuo and to keep their promise.

Shizuo held the burned Izaya close to him, carefully wrapping the cape to make sure no one could see… as well as so the sunlight would not hurt him any further.

“Yes I found him!” Shizuo shouted back as the villager cried out happily and was climbing the debris to assist if necessary. But Shizuo was thinking fast. He couldn’t ask for a doctor. The villagers here have been friendly and kind to him but there was no way he could explain that his ‘partner’ was a vampire. He quickly carried Izaya, holding him close to his heart to make sure that he could hear the vampire’s pulse as he hurried down the road to his inn.

 

* * *

 

It took a lot of hasty explanations and half thought excuses but he finally got the villagers to understand that Shizuo wanted to treat his partner alone. The excuse that his partner was too ashamed to show his terribly disfigured face seemed to have done the trick when a charred black hand accidentally slipped out of the blanketed cape and Shizuo quickly hid it again in embarrassment. He looked like an acrobat, walking up the stairs while trying to juggle his vampire and answering the bombarding series of questions after questions from the villagers who wanted to help. Many of them recoiled in shock at the blackened hand and backed off, several of them darkly whispering that perhaps it was a corpse that the priest was trying to carry. Luckily the village was too small to even have a doctor, they had some midwives and a few matrons who knew a bit of herbal remedies and that was it. He asked for burn salves and bandages, not sure if it’d work on a vampire but it was better than nothing. Several villagers thanked the god for the miracle that the partner was alive even if he was badly burned and Shizuo just nodded and smiled, holding his tongue in check.

Once he closed the door with his foot, Shizuo carefully laid Izaya on the bed. He ran to draw the curtains in an effort to make sure the room was totally dark. Then he doubled back to unwrap Izaya and inspect him again.

His pulse was faint…. so very faint.

Panicking, Shizuo grabbed his dagger and sliced a large gash in the middle of his palm to squeeze a generous amount of blood to the vampire’s black lips. He remembered that it actually didn’t take that much blood a week ago for Izaya to recover. Even a trickle should be enough.

Still Izaya made no move to swallow. The drips of blood fell uselessly around the lips and cheek. Even when poured into the mouth, the vampire did not respond.

“Come on Izaya…. Please….! Please drink…. please!!” Shizuo begged, squeezing his bleeding hand as his nails dug deeper into the middle of his torn skin.

Still nothing.

Now Shizuo was really panicking, wondering what he was suppose to do. What would Kasuka do? What would Shinra do?! He tried to think back on all his education as a hunter but most of his education was about how to kill a vampire quickly… not about how to heal a vampire!

“Think, come on Shizuo, think!!!” Shizuo wanted to bash his head against the wall. His stupid, stupid head! Why was he always so useless?! Why couldn’t he do anything right?! Why did he never have the answer to anything?

Was he going to let Izaya die … like this? Just because he can’t swallow?

Then… an irrational thought hit him. A thought which became connected from the loosely integrated ideas of swallowing, dying, and his slight education in C.P.R. - given in case of an emergency to save his brothers- to lead to …

He looked back at Izaya in horror.

But at the same time, he knew he didn’t have much time to hesitate. Izaya did not hesitate to save him, twice in fact. One time had landed him an almost death from being riddled in silver bullets… and now the second time leading him to being burned to the point that he was barely alive…

And Izaya had opened his eyes and called his name.

He had been waiting for Shizuo, expecting the hunter to find and save him.

Shizuo couldn’t let him down.

Swallowing his own pride, the blond quickly lapped up the dripping blood from his hand…

… and then leaned down to connect their lips. Using his fingers, Shizuo pried open the vampire’s mouth and tongued the blood down the vampire’s throat, trying to get at least a trickle of blood into his system.

Shizuo had never kissed anyone before and he did not know what to expect. And though technically this wasn’t a kiss, the taste… and the feel was beyond his expectation….

It was horrific! Absolutely ghastly!! He could taste the dried up burned flesh, like licking a charcoal stone or burned ash. Shizuo had no idea Izaya had burned so badly! The fire had gotten into the inside, Izaya must have breathed in smoke so hot that the vampire’s entire inner organs must have been on fire! The young hunter cringed. The pain… must have been excruciating.

Not caring at all about the fact that he was breaking various codes as a hunter and that this would be considered all sorts of a sinful act as a priest, Shizuo pulled away to practically rip the flesh off of the middle of his hand and slurped a mouthful of his own blood. He then poured as much as he could down Izaya’s throat, pushing the thick liquid down with his tongue.

He repeated the act several times, praying and praying that it would work. More and more Shizuo blamed himself. He should have paid more attention. He should have _known_ that the other vampire was not Izaya. He even STUDIED about shape shifting abilities in a vampire. He was a hunter! _He should have known_ that vampires work in groups sometimes. He should have paid much more attention so Izaya didn’t have to suffer so m…

“Cough…!”

Shizuo almost jerked back when finally Izaya responded but the vampire grabbed him fiercely with an inhuman grip, his claws latching onto his neck and….

His teeth! His fangs had grown back, the first thing the vampires heal out of natural instinct for survival as he tried to bite Shizuo’s tongue. Izaya’s own tongue quickly restored enough to make that muscle lick the young apprentice’s tongue for more…. Izaya sucking on the priest’s tongue greedily… hungrily…

“Mmngh…!!” Shizuo flinched as Izaya hissed and his nails clutched him in position. The blond could feel his own breath quicken and his heart pound as the vampire licked and sucked, trying to get all the blood from his mouth.

“W-wait…! Here, I’ll give you more…” Shizuo pulled away before Izaya tried to bite his tongue and injure himself. He was pretty sure that Izaya’s fangs wouldn’t be strong enough to draw blood from his extraordinarily hard muscles.

Izaya screeched and his eyes were bloodshot, as if he wasn’t recognizing anything in front of him due to bloodlust, just like the first time Shizuo had given him more than a drop of blood a week ago when he needed to heal fast for survival. Shizuo cringed at the piercing cry and quickly covered Izaya’s mouth with his bloodied palm.

“Shh, shh… shh….! W-we can’t let them hear us… nnngh….. _haaa_... ngh….!!” Shizuo shuddered as Izaya attacked his wound, greedily sucking and biting for more. Shit… it was…. it was… extremely arousing. The bite didn’t hurt Shizuo of course, it felt more like a nibble. The sucking and licking… definitely made his pants tight and hard.

“F-flea… dammit, there’s enough, so… nngh… d-don’t… aaahnn….!” Shizuo panted as he realized exactly how bad it was to have the vampire suck your blood directly in large quantity… and with such passionate ferocity. The blood pooled and swirled violently inside the young hunter as Izaya sucked and sucked, making the hunter feel the excitement and his heart pump faster. Izaya was recovering quicker and quicker… the tongue was more nimble now, his skin didn’t look like a month old corpse, his hair was slowly being restored instead of the burnt scalp… and his lips… that sinuous lips and tongue that sucked the life out of him… and those gorgeous eyes, while bloodshot, the glow was returning, those orbs that sparkled like precious gems.

“D-dammit…. flea…” Shizuo groaned softly and unbuckled his belt and ripped down his pants before his hard cock ripped a new hole in the fabric. Izaya did not seem to hear him as his fangs bit into the hand and sucked rather hard. The teeth obviously did very little damage but the vampire seem to do it out of reflex rather than voluntarily. That hard suckling sent another muffled groan as Shizuo tried to stifle his moans. It felt so good… his heart hammering as his blood rushed in his veins.

With his bloodshot eyes, Izaya shrieked for more when the hand wasn’t enough, attacking Shizuo’s neck. The fangs could not pierce him but the vampire kept trying, breaking his fangs and his claws in the process.

“You stupid flea… I told you you can’t pierce me with that little fang of your’s….” Shizuo sighed as he watched the pitiful struggle. And perhaps it was because he too was overcome with lust or perhaps it was because Izaya’s charm had worked its way into him during their session, Shizuo weakly grabbed his dagger and slashed a gash on his neck as his head pounded with rushing blood and endorphin.

His vampire tackled the blood with fervor and fed and fed to his heart’s content. Shizuo groaned as his cock burst with an ecstasy he had never felt before. And though he knew that he had committed a sin that would horrify his church, his one hand supported the back of the feeding vampire’s head protectively, his fingers tangling into the smooth and shiny raven hair instead of the burned scalp while Shizuo’s other hand wrapped around the vampire’s petit waist. The vampire hunter closed his eyes in content now that he had finally saved Izaya from dying and that was good enough to him. Surely god would forgive his sin if it was for an act of salvation of a soul.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's note: Huge thanks to DarkSapphireXx for giving me the courage to continue writing despite the long hiatus of my ongoing insecurities. Thank you.
> 
> And another huge thanks to Culpaeros and Lilyjadeth for beta-ing, and cherrymoyaya and junjoupureheart for continued support along with everyone on tumblr. Thank you for believing in me.
> 
> The fic is STILL NOT OVER YET. And Catnip isn't over yet either~ (not sure why i got several people thinking all my fics are done orz. If it doesn't say -the end- at the end, (which is my signature ) it's not done guys. I'm still writing it ;_; ) i was gonna write more and end it in a cliffy but my beta friend culpaeros encouraged me to just post it now and stop torturing my fans pfff so you guys got it luck-ier pffff. For now. dun dun dun~~~
> 
> Happy bday to Izaya tho i posted this one day too late aha~


	7. Chapter 7

Since the heavy drinkers didn't start coming to the tavern below the inn until the afternoon, the morning was quiet while the previous night’s crowd settled into their hangovers. Luckily, this meant the priest was able to have his peace as he said his morning prayers before his meal.

At the lower floor of the inn, he was having breakfast: a large rare roast instead of gruel. He needed to replenish the copious amount of loss of blood… not that he could explain that to the innkeeper or the villagers. He just said he was hungry from yesterday’s search. The good people of the village had given him the best cut of their meat which Shizuo knew must be hard to acquire. But he gladly thanked them for such generosity.

Shizuo’s cheeks burned from his memory. He couldn’t believe he…. _came_ from just having his blood sucked off.

‘Izaya’s going to tease that I’m a fucking virgin if he remembers yesterday…’ Shizuo sighed as he thought to himself. Wait, wait… no. He shouldn’t even be thinking this!!! It’s sinful!!!

Shizuo scarfed down his food and drank noisily. As he was about to get up to check on Izaya, the young tavern maids arrived with a tray of warm soup for Izaya. Shizuo thanked the girls as they looked very concerned about his partner’s health. The rumors had spread since a few of the villagers had seen the charred hand from the night before and now that the priest had been hiding his partner’s state ever since the whispering only increased. Shizuo did his best to smile and say not to worry as he took the tray upstairs. It looked like he would have to eat that himself since he was sure Izaya would rather drink his blood. 

Shizuo knocked on the door first and cleared his throat, alerting Izaya that he didn’t need to be startled if he was awake.

“It’s me, I’m coming in.” 

He turned the knob and entered, closing the door behind him swiftly. The drawn curtains kept the sunlight out and cloaked the room in darkness. The bed was empty…. which made the blond’s heart beat fast. Izaya didn’t… run out did he? 

Upon closer inspection, Shizuo realized that the sheet still bore dry blood with a trail leading to the bathroom. Shizuo calmed his heart, glad that Izaya had not run away. He opened the door to the tiny room leading to the chamber pot… and there was the vampire, in his little round wooden tub, building his soap bubble suds. Shizuo couldn’t help but snort as he watched the half raw vampire furiously rub the brown soap with a sponge to create clear soap bubbles floating around everywhere in that tiny room.

“What are you doing?” Shizuo had to ask even though he could plainly see for himself.

“What do you think I’m doing?” Izaya glared and stuck his tongue out. “I’m building soap bubble castles! Clearly you humans lack the brain power necessary to provide proper cleaning facilities… do you know how long it took me to figure out how to warm up the water with the menial supply of firewood here?”

Shizuo burst out laughing as Izaya pouted. This vampire was cuter than he had thought, Shizuo admitted inwardly. Almost like a pet. Then he walked over and grabbed the soap from Izaya’s hand. 

“Here, I’ll help.” 

Shizuo started lathering the soap with water in his hands and rubbed it into Izaya’s scalp. Already most of his hair had regenerated… but his scalp was still soft and sensitive.

“Careful, careful!” Izaya chided. 

“I am,” Shizuo growled as he continued to massage Izaya’s head. He was holding back his strength as much as possible.

He peered over to note that Izaya’s skin had mostly regenerated too now, there weren’t as many parts of him now that were charcoal black or raw flesh red with burns. Just few patches was all. 

And the wings…. Shizuo couldn’t help but cringe as he noticed that those once beautiful leathery bat wings were mostly skeletal, the bones clearly visible with no meat left on them. It seemed Izaya had concentrated on healing his inner organs and his outer skin first rather than the…

Shizuo paused. When… the priest had first given him a lot of blood that time underground, Izaya had regenerated the wings first so he could fly and escape. But this time… he had regenerated his organs and outer appearances… 

T-that kind of made Shizuo warm inside. 

Then his gaze returned to those raw skeleton wings, sparse flesh only barely managing to cling to the bones, and that drained away what little happiness he had felt in that moment.

“Did… you want me to wash… your back?” Shizuo asked a bit warily.

“No!” Izaya splashed and quickly turned away from the priest, his wings flapping like a startled chick behind him.

Shizuo froze, startled as he was about to reach to touch those broken wings.

“Ah… sorry, I yelled with more force than I intended…” Izaya briefly cast his eyes down before quickly looking back up. 

“You can wash my feet instead.” He smirked as he lifted up his legs and wiggled his toes.

Shizuo sighed as he got the sponge and started scrubbing. “I didn’t get to pour water on your head you know…” he said. “Hey, hey! Don’t wiggle!” The blond grabbed onto the ankle as Izaya giggled and kept moving out of the way.

“B-but, Shizu-chan! Ahahaha, hahaha!! It-... It tickles! Aahaha!!” 

“Then don’t move and we can get this done quicker, hey!!” Shizuo yelled as more soapy water splashed onto his clean black priest outfit. “Ugh…”

“Man, aren’t you priests… you know, good at washing feet? Those sinners and catholic rituals and what not… You suck at this Shizu-chan~~” Izaya giggled more as he teased.

Shizuo muttered, “well, I’m _sorry~~_ for sucking at washing feet.”

“Well it’s an important job of a priest isn’t it? Exemplifying how the son of God lowered himself as a servant to wash the feet of sinners, blah, blah~~ You can even call it symbolic.” Izaya giggled as the priest rubbed the arch of his sole. 

“Yeah, yeah, I’ll get you squeaky clean,” Shizuo said as he complied readily, not complaining as he did clean Izaya. It _was_ symbolic in a way, Shizuo admitted. Regardless, he was glad that the vampire was in a joking mood, that meant he was healing. 

No wait…. sometimes Izaya would lie by joking. Shizuo frowned… it was hard to read this vampire.

“Anywhere else, princess?” Shizuo asked as he finally stood up. Aside from his underwater midsection, Izaya was now covered in soapy bubbles from head to toe .

“Nah, I’m good… this is kinda nice soaking here….” Izaya leaned back as his legs pulled up on top of the edges of the small round tub. “Could be better but it’ll do.” 

Shizuo was about to grumble that the vampire should be grateful that this inn even had a bathing facility, when he stopped.

What was it that Shinra said? Something about Izaya’s tone being of nobility…. 

For nobility, guess this wasn’t the best treatment, huh.

Shizuo almost scratched his head with his soapy hands before he stopped himself. Well, he’d done his best, right? 

The priest fetched a bucket of warm water and poured it slowly over Izaya’s hair, trying his best to cup and shield the vampire’s forehead so the excess didn’t dribble down to the front. 

“Mmmm… this… really does feel nice….” Izaya let out a soft satisfied sigh… which sounded a lot similar to that moan from last night. And that sound went straight to Shizuo’s groin. 

Speaking of last night…. here was the vampire, all wet and naked in front of him.

Shizuo gulped, trying his best not to ‘check out’ the monster. 

“Well, I guess you can come out when you’re ready….” Shizuo suddenly felt very awkward. He wasn’t uncomfortable before but now he was. 

“Mmm… don’t leave yet~” Izaya leaned back dreamily with another moan that did NOT help Shizuo. “Stay awhile.” The vampire opened his eyes lazily, the little slit revealing those glowing rubies as the charming effects started working their magic. Those eyes were still irresistible whether this truly was a magic of the devil or just natural innate talent. The priest gulped, stopping himself before he made a cross gesture with his hands and prayed against the temptation he was facing. Th-that would be too rude right?

“And do what, watch you wash?” Shizuo huffed. 

“Hmmm… I guess that is boring huh, oh well.” Izaya finally grabbed the edge of his tub and stood up. Shizuo froze in his position as his eyes beheld the full frontal view of a naked man.

“W-wait, you don’t have to get out if you want to stay longer…!” Shizuo quickly placed both his hands in front of him, trying not to peek as Izaya stood all dripping wet with white soap suds clinging to him in such an erotic manner as they slowly fell from his body inch by inch...

“Nah, it’s fine.” Izaya waved off Shizuo’s protest as he got out almost too casually while the blond was experiencing internal turmoil. Then he flapped his wings to get the excess water off of him like a wet dog. 

“Ugh…! Izaya!!!” Shizuo sighed in exasperation as more water landed on him.

“Oops,” Izaya giggled as he stood up, unconcerned of the wet state Shizuo was in now because of him, instead moving on to the more ‘important’ topic on hand. “Towel?”

Shizuo blushed furiously (‘in anger’ he told himself, _‘in anger’_ ) as he fumbled for the large sheet and held it out with both hands, spreading it out for the vampire as he faced away from Izaya. Izaya smiled and walked toward him, wrapping himself. Shizuo peeked when he felt a pull of the towel as Izaya walked away.

Already the white towel was growing pink spots with blood and that made the blond frown. Izaya… hadn’t fully healed his gaping wounds… didn’t that sting in the soap water?

The vampire appeared indifferent, however, as he walked out. Then he turned up his nose at the dirty bed sheets.

“Shizu-chan~ Why didn’t you change the bed sheets? Surely you aren’t thinking I’m going to lay down on the same dirty sheets right?”

“Coming, flea….” Shizuo grumbled as he hurried forward and yanked the sheets off. Luckily he found the new sheets in the drawer and fumbled once again as he tried to stretch it across the haymattress… with very little luck. There were lumps here and there and Izaya rolled his eyes. 

“It’ll have to do.” The vampire sighed at Shizuo’s incompetency and laid down, curling up like a silkworm. 

“Hey, hey. Don’t lay down with your wet hair, geez…” Shizuo sighed as he started to strip out of his wet black priest outfit. He hung it to dry as he grabbed a towel and sat on the bed. He peeled off the blanket so he could tousle Izaya’s hair. The vampire purred like a little black cat as he placed his chin on the priest’s lap, turning his head this way and that. It really did feel like having a pet… Shizuo wondered if Ruri acted this way with Kasuka when they were alone…

Shizuo paused. That proper Ruri? With Kasuka…? No way… especially since….

The priest flushed. He really didn’t want to know about Kasuka and Ruri’s private lives now that he knew exaaaaaactly what it was like to be a contractor with a vampire… this little leech was not only sucking off his blood but also seducing him every single second! Not to mention, a pampered, greedy, selfish leech at that. 

“So… er… do you need more blood?” Shizuo asked carefully as he dried Izaya’s hair.

“Are you going to feed me?” Izaya blinked open his eyes to look up at him. The priest swore they sparkled like gemstones.

“Well, do you need more? To heal, I mean.” Shizuo couldn’t really see through all the blankets but those spots of fresh blood worried him. 

“Of course!” Izaya perked up and crawled into his lap. This was seriously not good for Shizuo’s heart. He could feel the adrenaline rush as those glowing eyes locked onto his.

“Alright, I suppose I could…” Shizuo leaned over to grab his runed dagger to prick his finger.

“Not again~~” Izaya whined. “You know it will take _forever_ plus another eternity for me to heal if you only give me dribbles of…” The vampire paused as if he had just connected the dots. 

“Did you give me more… than usual last night?” Izaya asked, curiously peering up as he settled firmly in Shizuo’s lap, making the priest feel very awkward… He wasn’t wearing anything but his undergarments right now. 

“ Y… you mean you don’t remember?” Shizuo asked warily. If Izaya didn’t remember, it would save him a ton of embarrassment right now.

“Remember what?” Izaya frowned. There was no way he could have healed so much from just droplets of blood. “I mean I remember fighting that nasty vampire,” Izaya said, trying to recount his memories. “Then…” He trailed off, realizing that he really did not want to vocalize how dreadfully painful it had been to lie there buried and waiting as he burned slowly, his skin black and his internal organs ruined, barely hanging onto his life as his heart fought and pounded desperately for what felt like an eternity.

“Well, I remember you digging me out sort of… then I passed out…”

“And then…?” Shizuo pressed. 

Izaya tiled his head and looked to the side. “Nothing much really…. except being very hungry.” He thought long and hard. He did remember that insatiable hunger and the clawing and the biting, the bloodshot eyes and that intense bless of satisfaction when… 

The vampire sharply turned to look at Shizuo. “Did you… ?”

“Did I…?” Shizuo waited with abated breath as Izaya sat up in his lap to look at him straight in the eye.

“Did you fuck me?” 

Shizuo coughed and spluttered as the vampire’s eyes widened and quickly peered over at the priest’s neck, where a knife gash from last night was still healing.

“So we did fu-”

“I DID NO SUCH THING YOU DAMN FLEA! YOU LATCHED ONTO ME LIKE A BLOOD THIRSTY PARASIT-!!!”

Shizuo quickly covered his mouth as he blushed furiously. S-shit… there were PEOPLE in this inn who could have overheard that.

“A-anyways, it didn’t go beyond more than you trying to rip into my skin and breaking your fangs,” Shizuo said with more composure than he actually felt. Izaya looked at him with suspicion. 

“That was all?”

“Yes! I had to cut my own neck because you needed more blood and you were biting me even though I kept telling you that your tiny little fangs can’t possibly-”

“Why would you need to gash your neck? I was alive right? I could have been sucking on your finger…” Izaya tilted his head in feigned disbelief as he tried to rile up Shizuo again. Izaya deduced that this priest was still inexperienced and tended to say too much when he was emotional. 

“Well you couldn’t, okay! I tried!! I mean…” Shizuo took a deep breath and let it out, trying his best to lower his voice. “I tried to feed you with a finger but you weren’t swallowing so…”

“I wasn’t swallowing? Was I unconscious?”

“Yeah.”

“Then how was I drinking from your neck if I was unconscious?” Izaya’s eyes narrowed.

Shizuo bit his lips, trying to figure out a way to answer this without giving away that they… they kissed… and that … Shizuo grew extremely aroused.

“Anyways what little drops of blood that fell into your mouth revived you,” Shizuo hastily summarized. “So that’s when you started clawing at me.” 

Izaya folded his arms and pouted at his contractor. “You know, priests shouldn’t lie.”

“I’m not lying!!!” Shizuo growled. He tried to quickly change the subject to something else. Anything really. “Anyways, why were you err… why did you… Why did you kill that vampire?”

T-that was very lame, Shizuo thought to himself. Of course they needed to kill vampires, that was why they were here. 

And as if he had read the priest’s mind, Izaya replied, “What do you mean why? We’re here to kill vampires right?” Izaya tilted his head the other way, not buying it.

“I meant… well, last time you let me send them peacefully…. This time you just killed him in cold blood.“

“I didn’t have much time. You had to save that damn kitty and…”

“No, wait… there was more. It makes no sense.” Shizuo thought about it. It was strange. Something wasn’t fitting right. They could have fought together. What was different with that vampire?

“I could have taken the cat and released it, came back to help you. Why did you lock me out?” Shizuo asked carefully with searching eyes. The priest realized that the vampire’s usual sultry eyes had turned more shifty and was avoiding his gaze. 

“I didn’t want people outside to notice my wings, my fangs and my ears, you know...” Izaya shrugged nonchalantly.

“And I could have closed the door behind me? No, seriously, Izaya. Why did you…”

“Because!” Izaya cut in with a exasperated sigh. “I was seen. Obviously.”

“Seen?”

“You know, the other vampire didn’t see my face, so we could take our time with it. If he had escaped, it wouldn’t have endanger me.” Izaya twisted his lips into a grimace. “But this vampire did see my face… though he didn’t recognize me right away. However, eventually he did recognize me, like I thought he had. I didn’t have the leisure to wait for you and accidentally have him escape.” 

“Y… you _knew_ him?” Shizuo could feel a chill as the vampire’s words sank in. On their first hunt, they had killed someone Izaya knew. Shizuo was prepared for that, but he didn’t want their first hunt to be something that could turn into a painful memory for the vampire.

Especially when their own ties were not yet strong enough. 

“Was he a good friend?” Shizuo’s voice cracked. He felt dread cling at his heart. What if this man was a good friend? A family member?

Izaya stared at the priest for good two seconds before he burst out laughing, tearing up at corners of his eyes as he hollered, “Oh my _god_ , are you seriously _worried_ about me?! You look as if I killed my own mother! AHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!”

 _‘Okay, I take that back, this flea is a shit head.’_ Shizuo narrowed his eyes and glared at the blithely laughing vampire hooting back at him, practically rolling around in his lap like a happy kitten who just caught a mouse. 

Shizuo growled as his hands crushed the hay mattress under him. “Well fine! Geez, _sorry_ , I asked! See if I worry that we killed your mother in the next hunt!” 

“Pfff, no worries. My mother’s already dead.” Izaya giggled. He let out a sigh to try to calm down from his laughing fit. “And my father too. So no worries there.”

That only made Shizuo freeze and choke up even more. 

“S… sorry,” he murmured. But wait, why was he apologizing?! THIS FUCKING FLEA KILLED HIS PARENTS, HADN’T HE?! So why should he care for his own parents’ murderer? Shizuo sighed as he scratched his head. This was way too confusing of a relationship to be in. 

“Mmm, he was just a third rate vampire actually,” Izaya shrugged as he settled back onto Shizuo’s lap.”Most of them are anyway, all those petty little Dollars members, so no big deal.” 

“Dollars?” Shizuo blinked. “What’s that?”

“You don’t know the Dollars? What the hell do they teach you at that hunter school?” Izaya looked at him in disgust. 

“You know, I’m getting tired of your condescending tones. I didn’t do well in my history and politic studies okay? What’s the point of knowing all that anyway when all we gotta do is kill ‘em?” Shizuo growled. Maybe he’d gone too far since it was a crude comment about vampires in general, but this flea was pushing him!

“Ugh, there’s a LOT of reasons!” Izaya hissed. “Politics are the VERY REASON why you hunters are hunting vampires anyway!”

“Huh? What are you spewing now, flea? We hunt you guys ‘cuz you drink human blood until you kill us.” Shizuo snorted in disbelief. 

Izaya bristled like a cat who got his fur rubbed the wrong way. “Oh WHY did I have to be stuck with such a dumb protozoan? WHY this Neanderthal?!” Izaya threw his arms in the air as he got up, dragging his long sheet trailing behind him. Shizuo almost snorted inwardly, since the vampire seemed to have forgotten that this whole topic came up because it was his feeding time. 

Izaya ripped the map from the adjacent wall that was hung there as an adornment and brought it back to bed.

“Okay, listen carefully. ‘This’ is where Yellow Scarves are at.” Izaya circled with his finger, the bottom portion of the map of their country. “Their leader is Kida Masaomi, a man who seems young, but don’t let his looks fool you. He comes from an ancient lineage and he’s just a few decades younger than me, that’s all. His men are really tough and comes from a line of fierce warriors. Many of them are pretty ruthless and their gang is considered the second largest vampire faction.”

Izaya pointed at the small corner at the upper eastern part of the map.

“And ‘here’, is where Saika’s Children live.”

“Saika?” Shizuo sort of remembered that name.

“Ah yes, Saika. Their leader is the ice queen Anri Sonohara. Beautiful girl, lovely eyes and as much emotion as a rock, pfff… They used to be a super prestige lineage, mostly scholars – a direct contrast to the Yellow Scarves. They obviously looked down on the thugs and were super secluded… distancing themselves as elites of elites… Until Anri-chan came to power. Then she revamped the rules. She realized that the Dollars were growing too much in power and that they, Saika and the Yellow Scarves, were too old fashioned. So she reconstructed their faction. Now they do accept non-pure breed vampires, since at the rate they were going they would have gone extinct.”

“And ‘this’ here is where Dollars are at.” Izaya circled with his finger, the top large left portion of the map. “Dollars are right now unifying all the vampires, the old, young, ancient families to mixed ones, they pretty much have zero rules for joining. If you want in, you’re in, even humans from what I heard have started joining. They are considered the biggest faction and technically the largest vampire faction in history. Their leader is Mikado Ryuugamine, the youngest leader so far…. but far the most mysterious. He appears as if he’s benevolent but I think he’s the most ruthless one of them all…” 

Izaya paused as if he was going to say more but he hesitated. There was no need for him to explain that he was part of the Dollars… to the priest, right? 

“Anyways, that other vampire I had to kill, he’s from the Dollars and I recognized him. I remember seeing him with Mikado’s right hand man, Aoba. I didn’t want him to report to Mikado-kun that I’m alive.”

“Why is that an issue?” Shizuo frowned.

Izaya gaped at him. “What the hell did you learn in your classes?! Oh god seriously, why am I stuck with this IDIOT?!” 

“Maybe I will understand it if you explain it better instead of calling me an idiot every other sentence,” Shizuo growled, his anger slowly rising. He knew he wasn’t the brightest candle, but really!

“Alright, fine. Pure blood vampires from ancient lines do not want to be associated with half-breeds. Thing is, there’s less and less pure blood vampires and more and more half-breeds or even only one eighth of a vampire.”

“Like Ruri.” Shizuo tried to connect. He still didn’t really see the point yet. 

“Yeah, like Ruri. That one’s your younger brother’s vampire right?”

“Yeah… Her grandfather or grandmother was a vampire I think… the rest of her family was human.”

“Right. So half-breeds are still pretty much like pure bloods except they’re not quite as strong. And with even less vampire blood, like what Ruri has, they are born more or less as humans. They have super strength, but they don’t need blood to survive… until they actually drink human blood. Then their fangs grow and they start gaining more and more peculiarities of vampires, such as being allergic to sun and needing more blood for nutrients. Got that so far?”

“Yeah…” Shizuo said slowly. “I still don’t see the point.”

Izaya facepalmed and sighed. “Think about it. If vampires continued to marry with humans and produce children, what do you think would happen to vampires?”

“....” Shizuo’s eyes widened. “You mean… there won’t be anymore vampires?” 

“Exactly.” 

“Wait, so… the best way then is… just marry the vampires to humans and everyone can be safe, right?” Shizuo felt a bit of hope rising.

“Not exactly. We vampires have a lot longer lifespan than you. And the transition is not best for you guys… half-breeds still need human blood to live.” Izaya sighed. Well at least the brute was slowly getting it.

“But it could be possible then? Humans could coexist with vampires?” Shizuo asked hopefully.

“Well, yeah, and we have been, you know. It’s only been recently, like within the last few decades, that it’s gotten so bad that you hunters have started to kill vampires left and right.” Izaya’s gaze was piercing as he looked up. “Why do you think that is?”

“Wait, wait. So we’ve been…???” 

“Of course!” Izaya sighed in exasperation. “I’ve lived for three hundred years, Shizu-chan! You guys are the ones who changed history, how do you think this world hasn’t been overrun with vampires unless we were getting along somehow? But back to my point. _Why_ do you think that, somehow within these decades, our relationship has gotten so sour? _Think_!”

Shizuo furrowed his brows. He didn’t… get it. What had changed between now and then? He wasn’t good with history lessons, not that it would help since Izaya had just said that the humans had altered their textbooks.

“I don’t… know. So why do we hunt you guys down?” Shizuo asked genuinely. “I mean, I thought it was because we’re scared of you?”

“Well that’s part of it. But I think there’s more.” Izaya too appeared thoughtful. “At first I thought it was because you guys didn’t wanted to be treated as cows or livestock but… I think it runs deeper then that.”

“You mean, you don’t know either,” Shizuo accused him.

“Not quite. But I have better suspicion than you obviously, heh.” Izaya smirked in that arrogant manner of his. “Don’t you think it’s weird? Why are the Dollars amassing so many vampires to their side? And is that the real reason why the humans are panicking and are trying to kill as many of us as they can? Or is it the other way around, that it’s because that the humans are trying to kill the vampires, that the half-breeds are scared and running towards anyone who’s willing to accept them? Or….” Izaya’s eyes seemed to sparkle in Shizuo’s eyes. “There’s another, darker plot hidden behind all this. Maybe someone’s trying to… create an army… for either mass destruction or conquest. Iyaaa~ won’t that be fun?” Izaya giggled in glee but Shizuo wasn’t listening anymore.

Shizuo had a lot to think about. And it made sense why so many villagers had thought he was part vampire. Maybe… he was? 

“But… it is possible, right? To turn back to the time when… humans and vampires could coexist?” Shizuo asked once more. “I mean, the whole problem of why you had to kill that vampire is because you didn’t want everyone to find out that you’ve become a turncoat, right? If humans and vampires can co-exist… then maybe you don’t have to hide anymore.” 

Izaya merely shrugged.

“Who knows?”

“Well…” Shizuo shyly smiled at that idea. “I’d like that, I think.”

Izaya looked at him as if he was half mad. “Why would it matter to you? You aren’t scared of vampires, and they won’t be able to bite you anyway.”

Shizuo shook his head. “That’s not it. I just thought it’d be nice, you know, if no one had to die just because they were ‘born’ a certain way, you know?” Just like how that baby vampire had to be killed because it had been born a vampire. Or how Shizuo had been hated because he was born with this supernatural ability that he had no control over. 

“You’re a weird one.” Izaya giggled as he sat up. “A romantic priest?”

“Hmph. Call it whatever you want.” Shizuo huffed. 

“Well, then. Now that the history lesson is over…” Izaya cooed and snuggled back into Shizuo’s lap. 

“I want my food.”

Shizuo couldn’t help but feel hypnotized by those sultry eyes enchanting him once more. It took a lot of effort to pull away.

“Fine, but again you’re drinking from my finger. And no sucking.” Shizuo warned as he searched for his runed dagger.

“What?! That’ll take forever~~~” Izaya whined. 

“No buts. I’ve told you this already.” Shizuo sighed as he pricked his finger. Izaya pouted but obeyed, sitting on his lap with their crotch almost rubbing against each other as string of blood poured into the vampire’s tiny mouth. 

He could feel his groin stir and Shizuo closed his eyes so he wouldn’t witness such a bewitching scene. He didn’t even understand why Izaya looked so beautiful as he had his mouth open and drank, it didn’t make any sense to him but it stirred something deep inside Shizuo. Something that the priest innately knew would be considered a sin in the eyes of the church no matter how ‘good’ it felt. 

Lord help him because Shizuo knew he would need all the help he could get.


	8. Chapter 8

_  
“Mmmngh… aaahnn…. haaa…. aaaah….”_

The moans continued from the vampire’s moist lips, his breath hitching as his body warmed up. His lips were seductively wet as his breathless panting grew harsher and harsher…

“Will you _quit that?!_ ” Shizuo snapped as the little winged creature made a show. That noise was going straight down to his groin!

“But… Shizu-chan… I’m thirsty… and it’s too hot…” Izaya had his hood up to cover him from the sun again, but it was high afternoon now and the light and the heat were beating down on the treeless dirt road. Once again, they were back on the road, but now they were travelling back to the church headquarters. The sun was high and bright, the birds were chirping cheerfully, and Izaya the vampire felt miserable as hell.

“Like I said, we could just make camp for the day and walk at night, but _noooOOooOOoo~_ you just HAD to sleep in a comfortable inn and decide we’ll walk the rest of the way to the next town.” Shizuo threw his arms to the gay blue sky in exasperation. “You made the choice, so deal with it!” he growled with finality.

Izaya pouted with his long pointy ears drooping down on his hood almost like a defeated cat. It was kind of cute, but Shizuo turned away so the pout won’t make him loosen his angry resolve.

“Anyways, we’re almost there.” Shizuo said gruffly as he wrapped one arm around that small waist and pulled him along. “Don’t fall back now.”

They had left the previous village at the sunrise once Izaya had healed enough to travel. Izaya still had not healed his wings, but it worked for the better since his cloak fell flat on his back that way. He had wrapped himself like a mummy and waved at the towns people to reassure them that he was fine. He even had his mouth wrapped so he couldn’t talk and accidentally show his fangs. The townsmen had crowded around them and blessed their journey back, thanking them again and again. The villagers were so happy to see that Izaya was alright that he and the priest almost felt guilty lying to them about raven’s true condition.

Regardless, with many blessings, the two left the village that morning with a great relief that their mission was successful and no one had caught on that Izaya was a vampire. After they were few miles away, Shizuo suggested camping for the rest of the sunny day and travel by night. But Izaya refused, saying he wanted to get to the next inn and heal more there.

Now Shizuo was stuck with a whiny and bored vampire who was teasing him to no end.

“Heh~ Shizu-chan~ are you flushing? Are you aroused when I moan? Whoa, how dirty and perverted, I’m merely moaning in pain and you find that aroused~ Does that mean the priest and I _did_ do something _sinful~_ that night when I...”

“I AM NOT AROUSED, YOU DAMN FLEA!!!” Shizuo shouted, his hands gripping too hard on his golden cross. But he made sure that the hand holding Izaya wouldn’t squeeze the vampire.

Izaya giggled and snuggled even more. Shizuo really could not tell if Izaya was joking or serious. He weighed his options quickly. He needed to change the topic before he was subjected to more of the vampire’s ridicule.

“So… going back on the… errr… history lesson… “ Shizuo lamely fell back on the same topic again.

“Yeah? What about it?”

“Er… I think you mentioned that humans joined the Dollars? I was meaning to ask you about that… Why would the humans join the vampires?”

Shizuo realized that must have been a dumb question as Izaya looked up at him as if he was stupid.

“Okay louse, if you don’t change your expression in one second, I’m going to pound your face to the ground,” Shizuo growled.

Izaya snorted and giggled, hugging the blond even closer.

“You’re such a violence loving priest, did you know that?”

“‘S not true. I hate violence.” Shizuo grumbled as he looked back at the road, squinting. It certainly was too sunny today.

“Well think about it, you dumbass. How are halflings even born? It’s because vampires and humans can fall in love, of course. Are you seriously asking me this question?”

“So they join the… vampires?” Shizuo was puzzled. “Why not join the humans?” Wasn’t it bad to be surrounded by so many vampires? Won’t… humans… be used like food? That made Shizuo shiver. It would be crazy to have more than one vampire suck one’s blood, right? It would be… overboard, the sensation must be....

Shizuo stopped himself from thinking further into the dirty perverted path.

“Oh. My. God. Are you serious with me right now? Of course vampires can’t join the humans! You all want to kill us! They have no choice but to join the vampires if they need to join a community for safety reasons! Vampires can’t _age_! Not to mention it’s annoying to hide our fangs and wings and what not. It’s just easier for the humans join the vampires.”

“.... It must suck to love a vampire.” Shizuo grumbled. So humans who fall into vampire’s charms were doomed to join their community because they were traitors? Was that it?

Izaya snorted, “Pun intended?”

“Pun?” Shizuo looked confused.

“You just said it must ‘suck’ to love a… bah forget it. You’re too dumb to understand any of this.”

“Well it feels unfair.” Shizuo continued. “It’s not the humans’ fault that they fell in love right? Don’t you guys have that charm thing?”

Izaya shrugged. “Actually those are usually temporary magic. They don’t last long and the bonds are not that strong. When humans and vampires fall in love to the point that the vampire wants a committed relationship, it’s a serious matter. They really are in love you know, as stupid as that is.”

“Love isn’t stupid.” Shizuo scowled. “Don’t say that.”

Izaya rolled his eyes as he walked on, one step closer to a nice clean room at an inn. “Of course it’s stupid, Shizu-chan. If you think about it, maaaaybe you’ll understand.”

“I don’t think it’s stupid.” Shizuo remained stubborn. “God is love and if love can flourish between humans and vampires, that’s a good thing. And if humans and vampires can coexist, it’d be even better. Maybe with more marriages, you vampires might convert to Christianity… and that’d be…”

“Shizu-chan. I think you forgot something important,” Izaya interrupted, before his ears melted off from all the stupid cliche propaganda that churches feed their pilgrims.

“What did I forget? I’m telling you that love isn’t bad.” Shizuo glared stubbornly.

“Yeah sure, fine. But you forgot one thing.” Izaya sighed.

“Vampires live forever.”

Shizuo paused at that, almost jerking Izaya off balance. He quickly resumed his pace again. “Oh… right…”

“Well, not forever, per say, but a lot longer than you humans. Besides, mathematically speaking, it just won’t work. If vampires marry humans, the whole country will be flooded with undying, unaging halflings who need human blood to survive. If those halflings marry more humans, then, and only then, will there be vampires born who don’t need human blood at first to live. But that’s two generations later. Are you even getting any of this?” Izaya sighed as he looked up at Shizuo. He couldn’t be sure if a faint glimmer of intelligence and realization was dawning on the blond priest still.

“Mmm… so in two generations it’s possible for men and vampires to coexist?” Shizuo asked hopefully.

Izaya’s jaw dropped. “You are either a dumbass or too optimistic! That’s ONLY if the halflings fall for humans again. Many of them just marry vampires. That’s IF they even WANT a romantic relationship. Many of us don’t even bother with that.”

“But it’s possible, right?” Shizuo said stubbornly.

“No, Shizu-chan. It’s not. What are you going to do with all those halflings and pure blooded vampires who drink human blood? Just kill them?” Izaya rolled his eyes.

“I’m sure we can get along.” Shizuo frowned. “ _We_ are getting along right? You and me?”

Izaya snorted. Shizuo sighed.

“Look, maybe we don’t need two generations or whatever, I suck at math, anyway. Maybe if we just start now, you know, with all vampires and stuff…”

Izaya shrugged. “Doubtful~ I mean there aren’t many of us to begin with, pure blooded ones, that is. And Yellow Scarves and Saika’s Childrens were always elite small clans… until the Dollars started amassing everyone, halflings, quarter blooded, and even the humans. Then you church people started growing in numbers with the hunters guild… Something’s definitely up right now.”

Izaya chewed on his thought. Something was seriously fishy… and it reeked of a massive conspiracy stinking behind Izaya’s back and he didn’t like it.

Then he looked up at Shizuo and sighed again. And he was _stuck_ with this dumb brute!

“Anyways, I think falling in love is foolish. I won’t be caught dead falling in love with a human,” Izaya scoffed, brushing aside the topic.

“I don’t think it’s stupid to be in love, no matter how short lived.” Shizuo scowled. He really didn’t like where this topic was going. As a priest of God, he could not condemn it even if it was love between a human and a vampire. “If they want to live the rest of their life together, they should,” Shizuo said, remaining stubborn on the topic.

“My, my~ Is that even something a priest should say?” Izaya teased, purring.

“Doesn’t matter. God never said falling in love was wrong.”

“But it’s painful, Shizu-chan.” Izaya shrugged. “Think about it. So if you fall in love with a human, how long would it last? Few years? Decades? Even if it lasted fifty years or more, that is nothing to a vampire who lives for an eternity, you know. Then what? Would you grieve forever, stuck in a cycle of regret and heartaches? What if you fall in love again with someone else? Would you feel guilty? The highest mortality rate for vampires isn’t caused by hunters, did you know that? It’s actually caused by ‘love.’”

“Love?” Shizuo looked surprised.

Izaya scoffed. “Can you believe that? Some dumbass vampires being stupid enough to fall in love, then committing suicide because they couldn’t stand the heartache of losing their loved one. Aaah~ I don’t ever understand any of this.”

Shizuo closed his eyes and grunted. “It doesn’t matter. Love isn’t evil or wrong. That’s all I’m saying. Stop twisting it around to make it mean something else, flea.”

Izaya threw his arms in the air and sighed. “You humans are so illogical, I don’t understand it. Anyways most vampires don’t bother with love and good riddance to that. And that’s probably why there aren’t many of us. We don’t really care about reproducing. We live forever anyway, so who cares? I guess it’s a good thing for you humans, or maybe it’s a good thing for vampires too. It’d suck if we had to fight each other for food source,” Izaya chuckled at that.

“You know… we aren’t just food sources. We got emotions and feelings and souls.” Shizuo looked at the vampire with disapproval. Izaya just grinned back.

“Yeah, yeah. And so do dogs. And cats for that matter. Would you marry your dog, Shizu-chan? How about a nice piece of salmon? Or a fatty cut of tuna? You know what, I’m really in the mood for tuna~~ Today I think I’ll fall in love with a tuna, tomorrow a salmon.” Izaya giggled and started joking again.

Shizuo sighed. He knew better then to argue.

“Aww~ Is Shizu-chan worried for me? That I’ll die of heartaches?” Izaya giggled as he clung to Shizuo’s arm. “Don’t worry, I won’t ever fall in love. I’m smarter than that. Not even for a piece of tuna~” Izaya grinned.

“Yeah, yeah flea…” Shizuo waved it off, simply agreeing to avoid the argument. From their position, they could make out the town in a distance. They were finally there.

 

* * *

 

“Shizu-chan… please~~~~”

“No means no, flea!”

Izaya was panting again while sitting in Shizuo’s lap, grinding up against him. It was getting harder and harder to resist the vampire each feeding time. They had checked in at the inn and were settling down for bed when Izaya whined for more blood, as usual.

“But at this rate, I’ll never heal my wings…” Izaya pouted.

“Are you sure you’re not suppressing the healing so you can have more blood?” Shizuo scowled again. He scowled often, but he had been doing it so often with the vampire with him, it was as if that expression was frozen on his face.

“Would I do that~~?” Izaya purred as he crawled on top, while the priest inched away on his bed and backed up against the wall.

“Yeah, you would!”

“Shizu-chaaaan~~~” Izaya pouted as he hooked his arms around Shizuo’s neck and purred, his tongue dragging along the cut finger.

“Please~~~~~~~~ Just once. I can’t… it’s just too little to heal…”

Shizuo peered back at those skeletal wings. He did feel guilty… just a bit. Okay, maybe _a lot_ guilty. The damn flea was good at guilt tripping.

“Okay fine… Just this once. Only until your wings heal.” Shizuo understood that Izaya would need his wings while at the church. That place was still filled with the vampire’s natural enemies… or so Shizuo reasoned with himself. It was _not_ because Izaya had crawled up to his lap and begged with those sultry eyes. No.

Shizuo carefully inserted his cut finger into Izaya’s wet mouth. He stifled a groan as Izaya sucked hard, the blood suddenly rushing. His body started to burn and his crotch stirred.

‘This… is a very bad idea...’ Shizuo thought to himself as the vampire’s wings started to regenerate and grow, carefully wrapping them into darkness as he feasted.


	9. Chapter 9

**Author’s Note** : Please note that this fic is not meant to represent our reality’s Christianity or Catholisim. It isn’t my intention to say religion is bad, it is just a plot point to have good priests as well as bad ones. I hope you guys can remain open minded while reading this fic, thank you so much.

 **Trigger warning** : Sexual harassment and implications of intended rape. (There will be scenes that depicts female verbal sexual harassment that is meant to make you feel ashamed/angry/upset. Just a warning for those who are very uncomfortable with such emotions since I think I have a few younger readers despite this being Rated R x.x;; You’ve been warned.)

* * *

 

Hijiribe Ruri was a vampire.

To be exact, she was ¼ vampire and ¾ human. But people did not care that she had more human blood in her than a vampire’s – even if she were to have one drop of a vampire’s blood, she would be considered a vampire. So she did not blink an eye as the hunters called her lewd names such as ‘slut’ or ‘whore’ whenever she walked down the hall by herself without her contractor, Heiwajima Kasuka, by her side. She did not react when the kids threw stones at her or dumped a bucket of cesspool muck onto her from above. She would calmly walk to a river far away from the village and wash her clothes before her contractor found out. She didn’t want to worry him, nor did she want him to take action to protect her. It would only make the abuse worse, she believed, and she did not want such treatment to start extending to her contractor.

To her it wasn’t discrimination. It wasn’t persecution or harassment or abuse.

It was just a plain reality, all because she was a vampire.

Her listless days were suddenly interrupted with the introduction of a newly contracted vampire to the hunter’s guild. This one was a full fledged vampire, and, as rumors had it, one from an ancient lineage. An elite nobleman from a supreme blood line.

There were plenty of jealous hunters who enjoyed snickering and spreading false rumors. That Heiwajima Shizuo had obviously been jealous that his brother had a vampire, and that he'd got himself one too to ‘one-up’ him. That Heiwajima Shizuo and the new vampire held indecent, sinful rituals every night behind closed doors. Some whispered that it was sacrilegious and that they should be thrown out of the church. Many were convinced that Heiwajima Shizuo was actually part vampire himself, and that was why he was able to have a contract with the vampire of pure blood; nevermind that they all should know that there was another hunter who had placed the spell on Orihara Izaya but had unexpectedly died. Those small details were irrelevant when overshadowed by a juicier story that circulated in gossip. Just little whispers that hopped from lips to lips, spreading darkness and lies, fear and misconception, even as Shizuo and Izaya walked amongst them.

Ruri understood them all too well, for she too was still experiencing exactly the same treatment even now. And she also knew that the gears and cogs that turned the wheels of time were too enormous to be stopped; like the huge clock above their church, all the church members were part of the design and one small cog won’t be able to reverse the clock or change the tide. That being so, she resigned to her role with melancholic ruby eyes that glowed sullenly in the dark.

 

* * *

 

 

“Ahahahaha!! I caught you, you humans!”

The screams and shrieks of nuns had become a regular wake-up call as of late. Ruri blinked her swollen eyes open as she looked from her straw mattress out the window up high. Her room was adjacent to Kasuka’s in a lonely tower far separate from the others and especially farther from the mass hall. It was closer to the outer wall where the streams ran and where the nuns washed the laundry at dawn.

Ruri sighed as she looked down, witnessing the usual scene as the vampire Orihara Izaya swooped down on the nuns to tease them yet again. It seemed to be a ritual at this point. The vampire enjoyed pretending to be scary as he chased after the screaming nuns in the river, splashing about with his wings and just being a menace before the sun rose too high and started to burn his sensitive skin. Ruri frowned on such behavior. It took her so many years for her to even carefully approach these nuns without scaring them, trying with all her strength to explain she wouldn’t hurt them…

… and here was that damnable, _deplorable_ vampire, ruining JUST that: her years and _years_ of trust she was trying to earn with good behavior.

“Is that all you can do? Take this! And this!” Izaya recklessly used wind spells to make tiny tornadoes, about the size of bunnies to chase after the nuns in the river. Ruri shook her head at the antic. It was such a wasteful use of magic. The nuns threw their baskets at the tornado bunnies to trap them, or hurl laundry at the swirling wind to stop them before their skirts were lifted and the color of their small cloths were revealed.

“Orihara Izaya-san!”

Ruri sighed in relief as Vorona finally showed up. She, as usual, pummeled the bunny tornadoes with her expert gun shots amongst the cheering nuns. Then she grabbed the long ear of the vampire as if she were disciplining a child, forced him to bend over and apologize to each and every nun he had teased, and gave him a basket of laundry to wash. Then Izaya sat down and wash the laundry with a pout as Vorona stood over him like a guard.

That was how it went for the past three days. It frustrated Ruri, but she was glad that Vorona was taking charge every morning to give everyone some peace. However, it was just the beginning of the other vampire’s day. Ruri knew that after this, Orihara Izaya would bother the elders during their morning prayers, go scare the kids in the orphanage, throw pepper bombs into the soup when the cooks were not looking, make ghost noises from the rafters while the congregation gathered, amongst many other nuisances throughout the day until Heiwajima Shizuo found him and dragged him back to his room, apologizing to everyone along the way. Ruri did not understand why Orihara Izaya enjoyed causing so much trouble for his own contractor. Didn’t he know exactly what kind of hardship contractor hunters go through?

The young female halfling stretched and got up. She hated mornings. The sun was still rising and her skin would start acting up. It would itch. And it was extremely uncomfortable. She moved away from the window with regret.

Back when she was still human…. before she drank Kasuka’s blood… she was still human. Sun never bothered her. She’d never even known she was part vampire. She would play in the field and make flower headbands and bring them home to her grandmother and her mother. She remembered happily running through the fields looking up at that clear blue sky and those dandelion clouds.

And now she shunned the sun like she used to shun the darkness. She remembered how long it took her to use her glowing eyes to see the dark. It took several months for her vampire powers to amplify and at first she was a normal human who couldn’t exist in the light, but too young not to fear the darkness. The young twelve year old Ruri remembered being thrown into a dungeon at night by herself the first time she was forced to join the hunter’s guild. They spared her no light, the monks laughing that she was a whore, a word she had never heard before, and it was a waste to give a torch to a vampire. She huddled in that dank dungeon, shivering in the cold. She told herself again and again that she was a vampire now, she shouldn’t be scared of the dark.

She shouldn’t be scared of the dark.

She was twelve at the time. Her mother always told her she should act her age, she was almost a woman full grown. She hadn’t had her moons day yet, but her parents were already looking into buying her a lovely coming-of-age dress. Her mother was making a blueberry pie that day and Ruri had helped picked the berries herself. Her mother told her to never go too far out, even though Ruri didn’t understand why they had to live so far away from the village. She wanted playmates. She had all the deers and rabbits and squirrels, but she wanted humans to talk to. She thought it must be grand if her father worked at the village like everyone, walking on those cobblestone roads and riding in those carriages led by horses and drink tea and eat biscuits, wearing those poofy dresses and amazingly decorated hats in assorted colors and sizes.

She had dreamed of living in a village like an ordinary girl – no, like a princess. She knew better, that she’d never be a princess, but it was alright to dream, wasn’t it?

The sun was still too bright in her tower as Ruri sat on her stool and somberly brushed her hair, starring at the mirror in front of her. The face was older. She knew better now, too. Such childish dreams had faded away many, many moons ago. She was a woman-grown, her shapely figure hidden under the plain white nightgown. She lowered the brush back onto her vanity and started to place the ribbons on her hair. They were gifts from her contractor and she treasured them. She carefully tied her hair, taking her time as she made sure they were symmetrical on both sides. Her expressionless eyes continued to stare at a reflection she recognized both as herself and as a stranger. The girl Ruri of twelve was long gone. Now it was someone else starring back. Someone who had lost that smile in her eyes.

 

* * *

 

 

“Hey, where are you going, little slut?”

“Looking pretty there~ Are you all dolled up to go seduce someone for a nip? Naughty, naughty...”

Ruri ignored the usual catcalls as she walked down the corridor that adjoined the ladies chapel where morning prayers were held. The usual gang led by Horoda were there. Sometimes, when she was lucky, the men slept in late. But most of them have to wake up for their morning prayers, too, and would stick around to harass the young vampire on her way. Back many years ago, Ruri would speak out for herself and deny such blasphemous allegations, but now she pretended she did not hear anything. She had learned the hard way that whatever she said or did was turned against her. If she were ever brought to trial, all the witnesses spoke against her. And she did not want to further trouble her dear contractor, who was the one they all blamed for her uncommitted crimes.

“Tsk, tsk, you know it’s wrong to seduce a priest inside a church, right?” Horoda reached out and grabbed Ruri’s arm, forcing her to stop and face them. She stopped but turned her face away, passively waiting for the journeyman priest to be done with whatever he had in mind today. He had usually just been satisfied with catcalls, but recently he had been physically touching her.

“Well, well. The little slut seems to want it today.” The monk licked his lips and leered, his hand slowly making ways to her waist.

Ruri remained still. She wasn’t sure what she should do. If she lashed out, surely it would be her who’d be reprimanded. It wouldn’t be hard to overpower him, Ruri’s supernatural powers were feared by many. But… she couldn’t inconvenience her contractor.

“Nnngh…” Ruri shuddered as Horoda had squeezed her waist.

“Ahaha, look at this whore’s slutty moan. Is it really alright to seduce the priest before your morning prayers?” Horoda then whispered into Ruri’s ear, “I bet you fuck _him_ , don’t you? At night when everyone’s asleep.”

Ruri instantly blushed hard. Her ears burned and her body quivered. She cringed, trying to block out those sinuous words that continued to pour into her ears and corrupt her.

“So what did you do with him last night?”

“Did you let him fondle those big breasts of yours?” his friend snickered and whispered along.

“Bet you liked that didn’t you, you dirty little minx. You spread your legs to him since you can’t have us.”

“Tell me, you crave for our seeds don’t you? For us to load our cum into your womb and quicken you with more monsters?”

“Bet you’ve been dreaming of being pounded again and again with our cocks, sucking us dry, you dirty little succubus.”

“I’d burn you with a silver bullet if I ever hear that you’ve been fucking around, you little bitch.”

“S… stop…!” Ruri pushed Horoda against the wall and covered her burning ears. She trembled as she crouched down, her eyes glowing fiery red with humiliation and the fierce need to suppress her exploding anger. She wanted to hurt them. She wanted to run away. She wanted to die!

“Hijiribe-san?”

The young female vampire stopped trembling as she heard the familiar voice and the footsteps grow closer.

“Why, if it isn’t Brother Heiwajima.” The men sneered.

The dark haired hunter walked up to them with firm steps and cold expressionless eyes. He had a young and handsome face but held a serious countenance. He ignored the jeering looks of his fellow brothers and walked over to his contractor.

“Hijiribe-san. Do you think you can get up?” Heiwajima Kasuka held out his hand.

Ruri nodded, taking the hand as she stood. She was embarrassed to be caught in the hallway with other priests making fun of her. She had been so careful to make sure Kasuka did not find out…. She didn’t want her contractor to get into more trouble should he try to defend her once more, like he had always done over the years.

“Did you need anything, brothers?” Kasuka turned to face the other hunters as he held the vampire close.

“Ah, I’d be careful of her charm, Brother Heiwajima~~” one of them said, pointing meaningfully at the arm holding the vampire too close. “You could be mistaken that you’re already under her spell.”

“She’s a minx, that one.” Then they all laughed and walked away. Kasuka continued to hold her close even after they had gone.

“Erm… Kasuka-san. I’m really… alright.” Ruri said as she gently pulled herself away. She liked his gentle warmth, but if they were caught seen in this pose from others, more rumors would surely fly.

“Did they… hurt you?” Kasuka turned to face the vampire. His eyes remained somber just like the pair that starred back. She shook her head.

“No. I’m alright, Kasuka-san. Really.”

Kasuka didn’t seem too convinced as he starred without a word, but after few seconds, he simply nodded in acceptance.

“I’ll assist you to the chapel…”

“No, no. You mustn’t. It would be wrong for men to come near the women’s morning prayer chapel, Kasuka-san.” Ruri reminded him gently as she gazed into those concerned eyes. “I’ll be alright. Really.”

Ruri’s heart already soar like a dove flying in the sky just to be with her contractor. Was it part of the spell for contractors to have a close relationship? She had always thought perhaps that was why she had felt so comfortable around Kasuka. Only recently she had realized perhaps it was not part of the spell when she first saw Kasuka’s brother’s relationship with his vampire.

“Then let me at least wait for you here until you’re done.” Kasuka suggested and before Ruri could say no, he added, “I insist.”

Ruri starred quietly into his serious eyes that held so much and nodded in acceptance. Just few seconds ago she had been cursing at the world and wanting to die… but whenever her contractor was around, she was glad she was still alive despite all the tragedy.

“Thank you Lord for this day,” Ruri started her prayers as she knelt down in the chapel in front of the statue of Mother Maria. She could pray with peace of mind, unmolested. She prayed with fervor and good heart as she thanked the Lord for all her blessings.

 

* * *

 

_  
It was like any other day for the twelve year old Ruri. Her grandmother smiled as Ruri came home with handpicked flowers and blueberries for the pie. Her mother was cooking something and it smelled delicious. Ruri set the plates on the table for everyone, for grandfather, for father, for mother and herself._

_Her grandmother never ate with them. Ruri did not know why, but it was the norm. Her grandmother was the most beautiful woman she knew. She was always smiling and it made Ruri feel wonderful. She also appeared younger than Ruri’s mother, but the Ruri never questioned it. She had never seen other people’s grandmothers and did not know that it was abnormal for grandparents to not age or not eat human food._

_When the father and grandfather came home after selling their wood to the village, they all gathered around to enjoy their mother’s cooking. Ruri always sat next to her grandmother to keep her company while they all ate. Ruri had once asked if she wasn’t hungry and her grandmother had replied not to worry, she has other ways of eating. She winked. Then she told her it’s a secret she mustn’t tell anyone. Ruri was so happy her grandmother was sharing a secret with her, that she nodded and promised she won’t ever tell no one, not even the cute rabbits and the deers in the forest._

_The ordinary night quickly turned into a nightmare as the doors burst open.. Ruri heard screams and gunshots. Her eyes were covered as her mother grabbed her and ran to the family room and bolted the doors. Ruri started crying, asking what was going on, but her mother told her to be quiet and stuffed her in the closet._

_“Don’t open the doors for anyone, Ruri!” she told her daughter, eyes desperate. “Don’t open the doors, even if there’s silence! Just stay in there until we come get you!”_

_Then the closet door was locked and Ruri was trapped in that darkness without light._

_She heard more screams after screams. She knew those screams. That was her father’s scream that died out after a gunshot. And there was her grandfather’s voice, shouting at them to stop, not to hurt his family… before another gun shot silenced him. And there was another scream, a piercing cry she almost did not recognize but it was her grandmother’s voice, telling them if they wanted her, they could have her… just leave her family alone. Then there were more gun shots and more explosions and more screams and more screams and more screams and more screams and more screams and more screams and more screams and…_

_Little Ruri covered her ears and started to cry. She couldn’t take it anymore. No more screaming. No more darkness. She didn’t want to know what was going on. She didn’t want to hear what was going on. She didn’t want to…_

_… Just then, the door to the closet opened and light shined through. There was a face she didn’t recognize, a young man with dark hair and solemn eyes. He stared at her, almost surprised to see her there. He wore a priest outfit with little armor, which meant he was from the hunter organization. He bore a small cross necklace that dangled from his neck. He was armed with a gun in his hand, a silver gun with rune marks across the barrel. He fumbled for it, which showed that he was fairly new at this._

_Despite her situation, it made Ruri giggle at the awkwardness of the young priest._

_The hunter stopped and lowered his weapon._

_“You… you don’t have fangs?!”_

_“Fangs?” Ruri tilted his head._

_The young hunter turned around to look back at the door to the living room where everyone was still being massacred, his expressionless eyes slightly widening in realization._

_“Your family…. you’re a halfling? No… quarter?”_

_Ruri looked confused. Halfling? Quarter?_

_“I don’t… understand.”_

_“Have you ever drank any human blood before? Tasted anything bloody?” He turned to look at her, his voice slightly hurried. “Quickly, tell me! If you’re only a quarter vampire and never had any human blood, we… we don’t have to kill you!”_

_“W… why would I…?”_

_There were more screams. Ruri’s face paled. That was her mother… her mother’s blood-curling scream as the men unloaded a barrel-full of bullets into her._

_“S-shit.” The young hunter cursed. His eyes expressed that the situation was too late. The other hunters were bloodthirsty and having fun with an easy kill… they wouldn’t question the little girl. They’d kill her first, then deal with it all later. By then, it would be too late._

_Ruri stared at him, confused. She had never heard a priest curse before…_

_“I’m Heiwajima Kasuka,” the young man said as he quickly placed the gun back into its holster. He looked about sixteen or so, obviously the youngest one in the group… none of the older hunters would listen to him, even if he tried to stop them._

_“I know this will be hard, but this is the only way I can think of to save you right now. Do you trust me?”_

_Ruri stared at the beautiful man with serious eyes. She nodded. Despite the horrors that were occurring right now, she felt that she could trust him. The young priest named Kasuka nodded as he started an incantation that surrounded them with golden light. Then he used a runed knife to cut his own finger. The blood,crimson red, strangely made Ruri feel warm inside. As if her eyes were drawn to that beautiful color for the first time..._

_“I’m so sorry to do this, I really am…. You’re not a vampire yet, but my elders wouldn’t believe me. They’ll kill you first and deal with the consequences later… So please. Make a contract with me.” The young man stared at the girl deeply into her eyes with both regret and fierce determination. “I promise to protect you with all I have. Be _mine..._ and I’ll make sure… no harm will come to you.” _

 

* * *

 

“Mmm….” Ruri stretched and yawned as she woke up the next day.

“That same dream again…” she sighed. She thought she had gotten over her past… but time to time the recurring memories came to her in forms of dreams. She did not enjoy the visitation of her nightmares but… she smiled as she remembered meeting her contractor for the first time.

After turning into a vampire, Kasuka was able to protect her from the other hunters as he had promised. He told them that she was under his protection as a vampire with a solid contract. Drinking blood was weird at first, but she got used to it… as the blood tasted like honey to her while other food turned horrid in her mouth. And he had always treated her with utmost respect, being there for her and helping her get used to her new environment at the church. Having living in almost total isolation save for her loving family, it was now hard for Ruri to get used to all the strangers who were now her ‘family.’ But she grew used to the cold shoulder treatments, the fearful looks in their eyes… and even Horoda and his gang’s rough abuse. There were a few nuns and priests who were warm to her despite being a vampire. She was treated far better than other vampires, she told herself.

Kasuka had worked hard to rise up in ranks so that he could run solo missions alone with Ruri and she was grateful. Working as a hunter made Ruri realize even more that Kasuka had had no choice but to turn her into vampire. If the hunters believed that anyone even had one drop of vampire’s blood, they would kill them instantly without question or hesitation. She remembered how they had to kill even babies without fangs just because they had thought that the mother or father was a halfling or a quarter… or even less. She shuddered at those horrible memories she tried to repress. Ruri was grateful as she counted her blessings.

At least she had been saved by someone kind and gentle.

“Ahahaha! Check this out!”

Ruri’s brow turned into a frown at the familiar voice from her window. Ah yes, she had woken up before that annoying laughter had started. But mixed with the vampire’s laughter now was… other laughter.

Curious, she got up to stare out of the sunny window to notice something peculiar. This time, the nuns weren’t running away from the vampire, but clapping as he displayed even more of his out-of-ordinary talent for something so mundane as making soap bubbles. The soaps were moving up and down the shirts on the rocks in several successions, making a huge soap bubbles that almost covered half of the bank where the nuns had gathered to wash the clothing. Izaya was waving his finger like a maestro of an orchestra as the soaps began to fly from one bucket to another, scrubbing at the small clothes, sisters’ garments and priests and nun uniforms and other laundry garments. A few rascal soaps were even rubbing at a few nun’s faces which had made them giggle. Ruri’s heart squeezed at the sight and she didn’t understand her complicated emotion she felt to see the vampire laugh alongside the nuns.

“Orihara-Izaya-san!”

Vorona was there once again to bonk Izaya on the head with a basket.

“No magic on the premises of the church grounds! You know that!”

“Eeeeh~? But you let me fly around~ Ouch.” Izaya ducked as he was bonked again with the basket.

“Using wings isn’t magic.” She pushed the basket into Izaya’s arms. “Now, wash properly.”

“But it takes forever to wash these….” Izaya pouted as he sat down next to the nuns. Some of the more older matrons seem to disapprove of the vampire’s presence, but Ruri noted that many of the nuns were smiling at Izaya. It was disconcerting sight… Has it been a week since he’d arrived? Ruri counted in her head.

No, it had been less than a week… and yet… this vampire was so easily accepted into their group.

Ruri carefully stretched her arm out into the sun. She winced and quickly pulled back at the burn.

She couldn’t join them even if she wanted to. The sun had burned her skin red and there were boils already forming…

… how could that vampire… stand it? His face wasn’t burned from the sun. Was it because he was pure blooded? Or was he healing faster?

She grabbed gauze to wrap it around her arm. Her vampire’s sharp hearing could hear their laughter still in the distance.

“Look! This is Shizu-chan in the morning!”

Then there was a burst of laughter as Izaya got up and shoved his whole arm into Brother Heiwajima’s small cloth and pumped his fist. There were many blushing faces along with some disapproving frowns. Still, there were plenty of nuns who were embarrassed by the joke as they must remain chaste, but couldn’t help but find it funny. Feeling encouraged, Izaya started sprouting even dirtier jokes one after another, eliciting even more blushing giggles. The nuns obviously couldn’t join along with such perverted humor, but they were only human, and Izaya was amplifying the thoughts they were forbidden to voice or even think.

“Orihara-san!!!”

Somehow Vorona was back after collecting more laundry baskets, as that was her job while the other nuns were busily washing. It seemed that the nuns were too embarrassed to knock on the doors of priests in the morning while Vorona had no qualms doing so. She started chasing after the vampire to get him to quit playing around and help them with the laundry, carrying her no-nonsense attitude while Izaya circled around her playfully, sticking out his tongue and complaining that he had washed enough dirty small clothes for the day. Perhaps it was a trick of the light? Ruri thought… she saw Sister Vorona almost smile when she threw a basket with pinpoint accuracy which landed squarely on the poor vampire. It looked like… she was also having fun.

Feeling dismantled and confused, Ruri stepped away from the window with shaking limbs. Why did it affect her so much to see the vampire so happy and easily interacting with others?

The rest of the day proceeded and it was even more bewildering for Ruri. Izaya played hide and seek with the kids now, and whenever he went ‘boo!’ the kids would laugh as they ran away instead of screaming. He and the orphans were caught stealing sweet meat and pies in the pantry and were all scolded by Sister Vorona once again. He didn’t even EAT any of those, but he had helped them sneak in for fun. Then the vampire got in trouble for dressing in Sister’s choir robes and had lined up to sing at the choir…. He was caught by Father Tom who was more surprised than angry and just told the vampire that if he really wanted to sing, he could join the men’s choir… all the while Brother Shizuo furiously apologized again and again as he forced Izaya to bow low with him, then dragged him off to get him changed. Despite the other high priest’s disapproval, that was how the vampire entered the men’s choir for that day’s sermon. It had taken Ruri three years to be allowed in the choir, and she sat on her choir bench with the other Sisters with an unsettled heart. She could hear the other Sisters giggle and whisper to each other at Izaya’s antics. She didn’t understand why breaking the rules made this vampire… closer to everyone.

What had she done wrong? She had worked so hard and had behaved exactly the way everyone expected of her to, but… why did this new vampire, who disregarded every rule, get along with humans so well?

After the sermon, everyone filed out to the dressing room to hang the choir robes. Ruri was lost in thought and was the last to leave. She stared at her robes in confusion and disbelief. She had been so proud that she had finally been accepted when she received these robes last year. It was a momentous moment for her, as if the whole congregation finally recognized her existence as one of them, not as a demon but as a believer, not a damned soul but one of the saved, to be allowed to sing in the presence of saints and of God…

But… that vampire had so easily.. so _casually_ donned the holy cloth and strutted into their life. Ruri felt so confused as she held her once-trophy and neatly folded it into the closet. It felt weird… Tears welled up in her eyes. It wasn’t as if Izaya were trampling her hard work directly, but… it was as if her years of hard work had been useless as she watched the other vampire so easily accomplish feats that she had thought were impossible, making her hard-earned trophies like these robes feel like garbage.

With a heavy sigh, Ruri stepped out. Unfortunately, Horoda and the other yet-to-be-full-fledged-priests were there, the gang that enjoyed picking on her ever since she joined the hunter’s guild, the organization within the church. With a heavy heart, she stepped forward.

“Why if it isn’t the little slut~” Horoda began as he matched pace withe the vampire. “With her pretty little wings, shaking her hips as if she..”

“Please Horoda-san. Not today,” Ruri spoke up. Today she was feeling sick. Today… she could feel her blood boil as she wanted to crush that neck… so Horoda couldn’t speak ever again.

“Woooo!!! What’s this!!!” The men gasped and jest. “The little slut has fangs! Is she going to bite today? How naughty… you know drinking blood in the church grounds would mean we have every right to kill you right here and now, right?” Horoda led and the men nodded their heads. They were cowards who hid behind their ‘rules’, twisting the system to make it work for them.

_*SLAM*_

Horda shoved Ruri against the wall. She winced, her wings crushed against the stone wall. Her red eyes shone under the shadows as the men moved to surround her.

“Well, well. Did the little slut finally decide?”

“You know it’s wrong to seduce us right? With that magic of yours… If the high priests found out, you and Kasuka will be killed.” Their breath reeked and Ruri shivered.

“What should we do?” one of them snickered. She felt a hand squeeze her hip and slowly slide upwards...

“It’s punishment time!”

They were like school bullies, kids still stuck inside men’s bodies, immature mentally yet their bodies have grown. When they were younger, they were content to throw stones at Ruri but now… she realized what they had evolved their ‘game’ into.

“I…!” Ruri tried to protest, mucking up some courage to defend herself.

“My… my… Is that… what? Five? Six? Against one?”

The men quickly stepped away from Ruri, trying to pinpoint where the voice was coming from. But the female vampire knew. She looked up and saw the familiar pair of red eyes staring right down at them.

With a swoosh sound of wind, Izaya fell from the rafters like a bat, standing in the midst of the crowd.

“Honestly Ruri-chan. I’m sure you can take on at least _seven_ of these rats. I mean look at them. All bony and skinny… Do any of them even know proper magic?” Izaya feigned ignorance and frowned at the men.

“Y-you!” Horoda squealed like a pig as he pointed. “T-this is none of your business!”

“Wow, really? Is that the best comeback you can think of?” Izaya scratched the back of his neck as if he was bored. “She’s not my type, but it looks like it’d be fun to play with you guys. Hey, so. Do I have legitimate reason to use magic spells within the church grounds if it was for self defense? I think that Sister Vorona drilled me on the rules the other day… I think it was in Paragraph 15.7, _’Thou shall not speaketh the word of mysteries in vain unless to protect thine self from harm’_ or some bullshit.”

Ruri blinked. “T-that’s right. That’s… a rule.” Ruri was surprised. Did he… memorize all the rules in the holy book? Even if Sister Vorona had made the vampire do it, it would still take a lot of time and effort to…

“Well then! You know I just made this new wind spell! I practiced it with the nuns, but I think it’s time for a real test!” Izaya’s smile turned sinister and Ruri stared in shock. She had never seen… him smile like that before! He started casting the spell as the men stepped back, their knees shaking. It took only three seconds and there was a HUGE BUNNY made of wind, the head brushing against the ceiling rafters as its bright red eyes glared down on the lot.

“Ta-da! With all the powers of my wind bunnies combined, it’s MEGA BUN-CHAN! Now then, Bun-chan~ Let’s see if you can make them fly~~~” Izaya smirked with glee as he pointed at Horoda and the others.

The young monks ran away screaming. Horoda shouted once as he turned back at Izaya, “I’m going to make you regret this! I’m reporting this to the head Father!” then he turned tail and ran.

“Whatever~ Go ahead if ya want~ Like I care if Shizu-chan gets in trouble~” Izaya shrugged and hollered back at them.

“Umm… Orihara-san… your bunny?” Ruri pointed at the demon wind bunny that was still poised to strike someone down.

“Oh this? It’s actually harmless. Looks formidable huh?” Izaya giggled and waved his hand, the bunny instantly vanishing. “Honestly though. Don’t you know better than to talk to Shiki’s men? Do you even know what they think about you every night? Gross…”

“Shiki’s men? At night?” Ruri looked confused.

“You mean you didn’t know that they…” Izaya clamped his mouth shut with his hand, stopping himself. He looked a bit troubled as he murmured, “This is worse than I thought…”

“What is worse?” Ruri asked again, frustrated that she wasn’t getting any answer.

“The conspiracy. I thought at least you guys knew that they were working under Shiki but… it looks like he had kept even that under wraps…” Izaya stopped from saying aloud his inner monologue to take a pause and stare at Ruri. “Nevermind, it’s best you don’t know.”

“W-wait!” Ruri called out as Izaya turned to leave.

“Look. I’m grateful… you helped me but... “ She quivered. She needed to say it out loud. “But I think you should follow the church rules more. It… it gives us vampires bad reputation when… we’re trying to work along with humans…”

There. She said it. She finally said what she wanted to say out loud all these days.

Izaya turned to laugh at Ruri. “Ahahaha. We? You mean, _you_ specifically right? I mean… why should I try to get along with humans? They should try to get along with _me_.”

Such a selfish response was not what Ruri had expected and she stared in shock. Sure she knew that Orihara Izaya wouldn’t have easily agreed, but the nerve!

“Look here, Orihara-san! I know that it may not mean much to you, but it means a _lot_ to me that humans and vampires will one day get along.” Ruri stepped forward to bravely speak again something she could not say in public. It was her greatest wish… to be able to be with Heiwajima Kasuka without feeling like she shouldn’t exist at all. That she was lower than dirt and disgusting trash. That she wasn’t worthy of even being alive.

Izaya stopped laughing. Then he walked forward with so much intensity, Ruri took a half step back as Izaya stood right in front of her.

“And?”

“And?” Ruri looked even more confused.

“And so what? You think humans and vampires can get along one day? How laughable. Cows get along with humans. So do pigs and chicken. What do you humans do? You eat them. Humans are our food source. What human in their right mind would want to live with someone who views them as food?”

“B-but..!” Ruri bit her lips as Izaya crushed her dream with reality. “Even so! I think it’s possible to co-exist!”

“You and Shizu-chan are so illogical. I guess it’s your human side… or is it because you were raised with humans that you lack common sense? Oh wait, I get it.” Izaya sniffed Ruri as she remained bristled with anger.

“You lack vampire blood. How often does your contractor feed you anyway? Once a month? A drop? Ahahahaha…!”

“D… don’t laugh! He feeds me plenty!”

“Oh? How often?”

“O… once a week.” Ruri flushed as her voice stuttered. Actually it was more like once every other week… and only one drop of blood. She got an extra drop when she had to use magic after a mission.

“Pffff… ONCE A WEEK? That’s it?” Izaya howled and hooted with laughter. W… wait… then … Brother Heiwajima Shizuo gave him more than once a week? That… was unheard of?

“Oh my god, no WONDER you reek of more human than vampire. Oh this great, such a great joke…” Izaya wiped a tear from his eyes. “Look, sure vampires don’t need more than a drop a month or so but wow, no wonder you’re this WEAK. I mean look at you! Your wings aren’t even fully grown!” Izaya playfully tugged at Ruri’s wing, which had barely sprouted past the back of her arms while Izaya had a full length span. “Compared to mine, these are smaller than a baby’s!”

“S-so what! It doesn’t matter! My contractor takes good care of me! And why are you always breaking the rules? Do you know how much menace you are to others? And to your contractor? How much trouble he would get into because of you?” Ruri started to grow angry. Didn’t he know that Heiwajima Shizuo would teased and bullied by others because of Izaya’s immature actions? Why did he do everything as he pleased without thought?

“Pfff… Oh please. Shizu-chan’s always in trouble even without me. And he’s already ostracized because he’s a contractor. It doesn’t even matter what I do.” Izaya winked. “Don’t tell me you’re so shallow-minded to think that you and Kasuka are the same. No matter how ‘good’, you are, _they_ ” Izaya thrust a thumb behind him, pointing at the church congregation, “will never accept you.”

Ruri felt her heart sink low at those words.

“Since they will never accept you anyway, why try so hard? They already think you’re fucking with Kasuka-chan~”

“I… I don’t!” Ruri screamed vehemently, cutting Izaya off. Izaya chuckled as he shook his head.

“Since they already think the worst of you, why not enjoy yourself?” He circled around Ruri like a little inner demon whispering temptation. “Ask for another drop. It can’t hurt…. You know, it feels _reeeeal_ good to suck from a finger, did you ever try that?”

“I… I’m not you!” Ruri shouted, pushing him away. Izaya laughed, dodging the blow and flying to the rafters again.

“Pity that you aren’t, Ruri-chan~ Welp, I’ll see you around~ Hope you get laid more often~ I think you need to vent that frustration somewhere more appropriate than at me~~” Izaya’s voice faded like a ghost as Ruri was left in the darkness and alone.

“T… the nerve of… that vampire!” Ruri fumed before she huffed and turned back to her room. Her ears burned with her cheeks as she walked away.

 

* * *

 

 

“What is it, Hijiribe-san?”

Kasuka’s voice held a hint of concern as Ruri remained quiet…. quieter than usual as she knelt to the floor to be fed. Tonight was a night where Kasuka would give her a drop, and Ruri was embarrassed to say she enjoyed their intimate moment together even briefly. She looked up at her contractor sitting on the chair by his study desk and flushed.

“I… I have a request…” Her voice trailed off, wondering if she should even ask.

Kasuka blinked. It was extremely rare for Ruri to ask for favors. “Please.” He urged.

“May I… have more than a drop…” Ruri hesitated. “That is… Orihara-san’s wings are larger than mine and my magic powers are still so much weaker I thought… I’m useless in battle and…” What was she thinking, she was clearly just jealous of Orihara Izaya.

“N-never mind. This was… such a bad idea… I’m so sorry!” Ruri stood up in shame. But before she could leave Kasuka held her wrist to stop her. Then without a word, Kasuka pulled Ruri to sit on his lap, to the vampire’s surprise.

“I’m glad actually you spoke up. Seeing Orihara-san, I too was wondering if I wasn’t feeding you well…” Ruri watched in disbelief as her contractor slit his forefinger deeper, the sweet scent of flood filling the air.

“Drink as much as you need, Hijiribe-san. It was my mistake to feed you so little… The church doesn’t have much information on vampires other than killing. It would only make sense that a drop only once every few weeks will lead to malnutrition.”

When she opened her mouth to catch the dripping blood, her contractor simply slipped his finger inside her moist mouth. She flushed instantly at such a sinful act, but drank with love and passion as the delicious taste flooded her system. The arm wrapping around her waist tightened as Kasuka breathed out a soft sigh. Ruri’s tongue lightly licked and she sucked gently for the first time, the dizzying sensation and the intense ecstasy of sharing this moment with him making her almost faint from bliss. Though she knew she should be ashamed, she couldn’t help but giggle and smile faintly, starring into those dreamy tender eyes who held her close like a precious jewel.

 

* * *

 

 

“You idiot!”

The whip cracked loudly against the bare skin as Horoda screamed and whimpered.

“Who told you to act on your own?” Shiki shook his head and massaged his temple. “You’re not worth this headache. I should just…”

“Please, please…. I can do better, I can…!” Horoda begged for his life, hanging limply on a cord. He was down in a secret dungeon as one of Shiki’s men held the whip. The white priest Shiki merely sighed in disgust.

“It’s just…. I haven’t fucked _him_ in so long… I couldn’t… I needed… a relief and..!”

“Should I have someone cut off that vulgar thing then?” Shiki motioned at Horoda’s cock with his chin. And one of the men kicked Horoda between his crotch, forcing the journeyman hunter to scream.

“No, no, no… ! Please…! I’ll… I’ll be good! I’ll be good! I won’t… I won’t touch any of the vampires! I swear! I just… I just wanted…! One last…”

“You’re disgusting.” Shiki rolled his eyes. “I should have used someone else.” With that, the priest turned to leave while Horoda continued to beg for mercy. As the guards closed the door behind Shiki, the screams continued in the underground torture room.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry this chapter doesn't have much Shizaya. I promise the next chapter will be back to Shizuo and Izaya's point of view. Thank you so much for reading! Happy Halloween~!


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: Violence and possible gore. I am so sorry that I keep putting these warning signs. It shouldn’t be a surprise since it is a vampire story but I’m worried I might have a few younger readers who might find some scenes traumatizing even if they are brief. Please read with caution. Thank you.

 

* * *

 

_  
“Nnngh…. aaah… aaahn…”_

The vampire’s sinuous tongue licked him up and down his length. The young journeyman priest panted roughly as he couldn’t take his eyes off of that bewitching vampire, the hooded seductive eyes, that sweet tongue as he sucked him up.

_“Haaan… nnngh…. mmnngh…. mmmpff…!”_

Then he swallowed. Shizuo shuddered as the vampire swallowed him _whole,_ taking him all the way deeply.

“S… shit…!” His mind exploded with pleasure as the vampire started to suck harder. “B… blood doesn’t come out of there…” the priest wheezed, his legs quivering as the vampire snuggled in between. The flea wasn’t… planning to bite him, was he?

“Mmm… no, but something else will.” Izaya winked and then he… somehow swallowed him deeper, his throat bulging as he took the full length of the cock deep inside of him.

“F… fuck…!”

The orgasm was blinding white, hot and wet…

* * *

 

“Guuuh!!!”

Shizuo gasped and woke with a start. He wiped the sweat off his forehead and panted harshly at the dream that was closer to a nightmare. He couldn’t believe he…

Oh shit.

He felt wet between his legs and looked down. And sure enough.

“FUCK!” The priest stood up hastily, running to the bathroom to clean up his mess. He had yet another wet dream!

Izaya yelped when he was roughly pushed aside. He rubbed his eyes and groaned, trying to find a warmer spot now that Shizuo wasn’t sleeping next to him as he hugged a pillow.

“Shizu-chan…. can’t you sleep more peacefully…” Izaya groaned. Why that priest cursed so much was beyond the unbeliever.

“Dammit, Izaya! I got you a whole new room! Use it!!” Shizuo growled after he cleaned up and changed into a new pants.

“But it’s coooold…. I don’t like to sleep in cold mattress… They don’t even have fire places in this dumb inn.” Izaya yawned and snuggled with the blanket, covering his head.

Shizuo groaned. How the hell did the damn vampire get in his…

… then he noticed the unlocked window of their second story building. Of course.

The priest growled as he threw off the blankets. Izaya yelped again and huddled with the pillow.

“Give me a quarter of an hour…!”

“No! Get out! I got you a new room, go use it!”

“I don’t wannaaaa~~” Izaya whined as he used the pillow to block out the sunlight, grabbing at the blanket once again to curl into a cocoon.

“Dammit, flea! We’re sleeping separately! I only let you sleep with me because we HAVE to at the church, but any other time, you don’t have to! So get moving!!” Shizuo grabbed the vampire and started to drag him out of his room, ripping the pillow from the vampire’s clutching hands and unrolling the blanket as Izaya spun.

“Whaaa! Waa! S-Shizu! Wait! Gaah!!”

Then Izaya was tossed out of the priest’s room like trash then closed the door.

The vampire huffed and banged on the door. “Shizu-chan! Shizu-chaaan!! It’s coooold! Shizu-chaaaan!!!”

But Shizuo didn’t open up.

Izaya was about to kick the door, but stopped. There were people downstairs in the tavern….. and in his pajamas, his vampire wings were in full view.

With a sigh, a big pout and a droopy wings, Izaya went to his own room adjacent to the priest’s to sleep.

Shizuo groaned as he rolled into his bed. The damn vampire… This wasn’t making it any easier for him.

The town was up north in the mountains. It was rather a large town and there were many reports of vampire movements there… but perhaps it was because the town was much larger than other villages — it was extremely hard for Shizuo and his vampire to pinpoint where the vampire, or vampires, were hiding. It had been a week and they still had no clue.

Shizuo sighed as he rubbed his face. These wet dreams, along with his morning wood, were becoming too constant now. The damn seductive vampire’s charm was slowly working on him and almost every day Shizuo was reminded of how the flea fed, the way he sucked, how soft that tongue was… and the way those bewitching eyes looked up at him and glowed. He couldn’t help but have a hard rock erection not only during the feeding time but any time during the day when he remembered…

“Shit…” Shizuo rolled over in his bed and groaned. He might need a cold shower again.

Meanwhile, Izaya shivered in his empty room alone. It was cold… so very cold.

Cold like that basement.

Izaya knocked on the stone wall that separated his room from Shizuo’s.

“Hey, Shizu-chan… can you hear me?”

But the stone wall remained silent. Perhaps the sound didn’t travel as well.

Who the hell installs stone walls in some stupid inn anyway?!

Izaya shivered as he gathered up the only blanket he’d been given and huddled with the pillow in his bed. His bed was much colder without Shizuo’s warmth. Maybe he shouldn’t have called him ‘Shizu-chan’ or poked fun at him. Maybe he shouldn’t have teased him so much every day. But still… he didn’t have to kick him out…

Izaya continued to shiver. He sighed softly.

It was cold. So unbelievably cold.

No, the coldness in the basement was far worse, but… cold brought back memories.

Memories he desperately was pretending he didn’t have and didn’t effect him.

* * *

 

_“Haaa… haaa…. haaa….”_

_The vampire struggled to pant. His ribcage was torn open for them to examine the process of holy water down his esophagus into his stomach and intestines. His heart was beating as all his internal organs were exposed for the ‘scientists’. Izaya felt so violated, his ribs painfully trembling as his lungs expanded and squeezed in short spurts. There was no use screaming or begging. There was no use asking them to stop, because Izaya knew they wouldn’t. They were too busy observing and enjoying this ‘experiment’ in the name of science and religion._

_One of the scientist admired the gory scene as his fingers ran through Izaya’s ribs — as if they were harp strings and the vampire’s cries were music to his ears._

_“One more time,” Kishitani Shingen ordered as he held his checklist closer and started writing again._

_“This time, liquid silver used for the bullets.”_

_As the funnel was shoved into Izaya’s toothless mouth, the vampire’s eyes showed slight panic. He screamed as they poured purified liquid silver down his throat, the hot metal coating his throat and down to his..._

 

* * *

 

Izaya puked into the toilet bowl. He hacked and coughed dryly even after there was nothing in his stomach. His haunting visions continued to torment him daily and they kept coming back more often. The cold was one of his triggers, especially cold stone walls, and it was getting harder and harder to keep up the facade that everything was alright. Granted, the priest was dense as a brick and hadn’t noticed, but Shizuo had strange instincts in weird places… and Izaya did not want him to find out about his… spells. He didn’t know how else to describe it. Memories he had blocked out kept coming back like a flood. And he drowned in them when triggered, unable to shake it off like a chained animal forced to watch himself go through that same torture over and over, repeatedly until they were done with him. Even though he was no longer chained up in that basement.

That fateful night when he’d escaped, the instinct to survive was all he had. And during those fifteen odd years or so, it took all his strength to endure and live until tomorrow, day after day. There was no time to contemplate and stay traumatized. But it was different now that his physical tortures were over. Now, it consumed his mind in a nightmarish form, raping him again and again and locking him back into the cages he had escaped from. Izaya had known that some traumatized individuals suffered from post traumatic stress disorders that would trigger a disassociation with their reality, forcing them to be stuck in time in that moment of their trauma as a way to keep his sanity in his mind; but it only made Izaya feel like he was about to completely go crazy, even if he understood in his brain the nature of this phenomenon. He couldn’t escape it as he was chained up and forced to return to the delusional pen and re-experience the exact same tortures he despised over and over and over again.

Though at first they came to him few and far between, these ‘spells’ were growing too frequent as time wore on. And Izaya had no idea how to cure himself from it.

The vampire shivered as he gathered the blankets closer. It was still cold. When did he get here? He didn’t even remember walking over to the toilet. Hadn’t he been lying… on the bed?

Izaya got dressed into something warmer. It was noon now. Surely Shizuo was awake. He put on his cloak to hide his wings, walked back to the priest’s room, and knocked.

“Shizu-chan? Are you awake?” Izaya waited. Then he was about to knock again when-

_WHOMP._

-there was a heavy sack around him and he was quickly whacked with a wooden bat to knock him out cold.

Izaya fell with a thud.

“This is the one right?” one of the men said as they tied the sack.

“Yeah, it’s the good looking one. Let’s hurry before his partner comes back!”

The men quickly carried the sack as if it was just a bag of potatoes down the stairs and out the tavern while Shizuo ate breakfast down below.

* * *

 

“Oi, Izaya?” Shizuo pounded the door. “How long are you going to sleep? I know you sleep late, but isn’t this a bit excessive? Izaya??” He knocked and knocked, but there was no answer. Fed up, he opened the door and was surprised to find it empty.

“Where did he go?” Shizuo frowned. Nothing was missing, and nothing looked disorganized… It looked as if Izaya had gone out without telling him. It happened often when they were at the church, but… not so often when they were out on a mission.

Part of him told Shizuo that Izaya was probably playing a prank or was out doing something. After all, Shizuo did kick him out of his room this morning.

But something felt deeply wrong. Izaya teased him yes, but he was never irresponsible. In fact, he was probably one of the most responsible people Shizuo knew. Despite his playfulness, he had never broken a promise, even going so far as to protect the sleeping Shizuo when Vorona had unloaded her bullets into their room.

It was definitely out of ordinary for Izaya to disappear without letting Shizuo know where he was going, prank or not. Besides, Izaya’s pranks had a very specific undertone. Izaya purposefully made loud actions that drew Shizuo’s attention to him and anger him… he didn’t disappear like this and leave the priest anxious.

Shizuo went downstairs to ask the innkeeper if his partner had left early that day. And though the innkeeper did not see him, Shizuo knew that Izaya could fly… technically…

But would Izaya fly in broad daylight from only a second story building?

He wouldn’t do that, but there was no way Izaya was still in the building hiding somewhere. Shizuo wasn’t sure where to look, but he went ahead and left the inn in search of both Izaya and the other vampires.

 

* * *

 

Izaya groaned softly as he came to. He realized he was in a sack with the end tied shut, but it was woven in such a way that there were enough holes for him to see through. He, and the humans tied up around him, were in some sort of a warehouse. All their mouths were gagged. Some had woken up but many seemed still dazed. There were maybe six of them? Seven?

“Are they waking up?”

Izaya heard one of the men unlock the door and walk in. The quick bright light of their lanterns blinded him briefly.

“You hit them too hard.”

“It’s hard to gauge you know! Why don’t you do it next time?”

“Nah, I might kill them.”

“Then shut up.”

The men walked over to inspect the ones who had woken up and the ones who were still knocked out.

“This one should fetch a good price.”

“Yeah, if she wakes up. You hit her too hard in the head, you idiot!”

“Will you shut up?!”

“Shh! Someone might hear us!”

Izaya listened carefully with his eyes closed, since his eyes tended to glow in the dark. Besides, the men had not figured out he wasn’t… quite human. It sounded as if they were to be sold off somewhere.

The vampire tried to wiggle quietly. Despite his inhuman strength, the chains and ropes would be a lot harder to get out of… He could use a spell… or use his nails. He could overtake them, maybe. Would he be able to fight all of them?

Izaya had to hurry. He must _not_ let them know… he was a vampire.

 

* * *

 

The priest frowned as he trekked across town. It was way too large with too many people. There were at least several thousand residents and not everyone knew each other. Asking questions about Izaya remained just as futile as asking about vampires has been for a week. Too many people matched Izaya’s description and the townsmen were unhelpful as they shooed Shizuo out of their shops when it was clear the priest hadn’t come in to buy anything. No one really cared to be helpful as they were busy doing their daily work, and only a handful of women were willing to talk to the handsome priest, limiting the subject matter to fashion or his ‘awesome’ adventures as a hunter. Frustrated, Shizuo sighed and perched on top of a church bell overlooking the large town of about 7,000 residents.

Where was Izaya?

It nagged Shizuo deeply. Maybe he shouldn’t have been mean to him this morning? No, but Shizuo hadn’t really do anything out of the norm… or so he’d thought. Or had he?

Shizuo went over the morning again and again in his head, regretting it. Maybe he should be happy that Izaya’s gotten clingier, isn’t that what he wanted? That they were bonding?

No, the damn vampire was doing that to annoy him. The teasing had nothing to do with the bonding at all. Shizuo growled. The damn flea just liked to pick a fight to get rid of his immortal boredom.

Izaya knew that he wouldn’t get tastier blood than Shizuo’s, so there was no reason for him to leave…

… unless being kicked out of his room was the last straw and the vampire had decided he doesn’t need Shizuo? Even if his blood tasted good?

Shizuo furrowed his eyebrows and groaned. No, he was over thinking it. Even if Shizuo had been a bit… rude and kicking the vampire out of his bed, surely he had done far worse things in the past that would merit Izaya’s hatred to finally leave him.

So if Izaya did not leave him voluntarily, then was he hiding just to annoy Shizuo?

Shizuo tilted his head and groaned more as he tried to think with his simple brain. No… again, Izaya’s type of teasing was much more ‘loud’, as Shizuo could best put it. It involved getting the young priest in trouble with others or poking at the blond’s buttons to make him angry. It was much more direct. Besides, the deplorable vampired enjoyed seeing Shizuo’s anger up close, not from a distance.

The blond hunter tried to back track once more. If Izaya did not leave voluntarily and was not pranking him, then….

Shizuo frowned. What was he missing? What other answers could there be?

Thinking deeply, the priest wondered if he was avoiding something deep in his heart. Then he knew. He knew deep inside what he feared the most had happened.

Someone had found out that Izaya was a vampire.

When he accepted his denial and finally dug up the one answer he had refused to even consider, Shizuo felt a chill in his bones.

The worst possible scenario was that someone, or many someones… or even all of the town, had found out that Izaya was a vampire and conspired against him.

He cursed under his breath. He had just gone around the better half of a day asking about Izaya. What if the entire TOWN was conspiring? What if they were all LYING to him as they dragged Izaya away to kill him and bury him as ‘THE’ vampire that the church had sent them to kill? What if they had mistaken Izaya as ‘the’ vampire and killed him, while the real vampires continue to feed the residents of this town?

Shizuo clutched as his golden cross hard as anger darkened to self-hatred at his own irresponsibility. A normal metal would have bent, but the cross, like his runed dagger, were made with special spells that could endure Shizuo’s crushing grip.

If it weren’t for the cross, Shizuo would have destroyed the church with the towering self-hatred that consumed him now. He had failed his partner yet again, when the vampire had never failed him. Annoyed him, yes, but Izaya had never broken his contract.

While Shizuo had failed to protect him in every single possible turn.

Of course, Shizuo had no idea if the worst possible case scenario was true, but his mind could not think of another reason as to why Izaya had suddenly vanished from his sight.

Regardless of what had happened, Shizuo couldn’t protect him again. And that was not only unforgivable, as Izaya had never failed to protect him back, but because Shizuo knew he had the strength to do so, if only he had been more careful. Kasuka didn’t have his supernatural strength and he had always protected Ruri, far better than Shizuo had.

One would think the vampire had the upper hand against the humans but… Shizuo knew better.

He had killed enough vampires to know that they had weak spots and were just as mortal as humans were.

Shizuo stood up and took a deep breath once he had pushed away his self-hatred. That could wait. Finding Izaya, by himself without the town’s help, was his first priority and the only way to be forgiven.

The young priest took a deep breath and sighed. Where should he start? Where could they have taken him?

Just then, something hit Shizuo once he let out his deep breath and thought for a moment.

Izaya’s smell.

Shizuo thought he smelled… Izaya’s scent.

Of course! The realization hit him. Shizuo knew Izaya’s smell!! It was that distinctively corrupt smell he hated but… ! Quickly, Shizuo sniffed the air again.

There it was. That distinctive smell that only he knew.

He quickly rushed down the stairs.

 

* * *

 

“Holy shit, it’s a fucking vampire!”

“Get him!”

“Hell no! FUCKING KILL HIM!”

“Where’s the fucking cross?!”

“LIKE HELL WE WOULD HAVE A CROSS!!!”

“Oh God, save me! We’re all gonna die!”

Izaya grit his teeth as he tried to fly as fast and high as he could despite the low beam rafters in the ceiling.

Okay, so it was _maybe_ a bad idea to burn the sack and then throw fireballs everywhere to cause mass panic before trying to make for the door. It had been a sound plan in his head. He had managed to get loose from the sack and the initial attacks worked enough for men to back away and then run for cover. Once there were a few fires, Izaya had thought it would be an opportune time to run for the door.

What he did not realize was that they were in a cellar that kept barrels of water — the kidnappers started hacking at the barrels to put out the fire immediately. One of the men had grabbed a crossbow with a fishing net attached, as obviously they were used to having a few escape. He fired into the air and it tangled one of Izaya’s legs.

“I got him, I got him!” One of the men shouted as he yanked hard with all his body weight. Izaya grit his teeth. The man was fucking heavy.

“Like hell you did!”

The vampire tried to kick as they grabbed at the hanging net and pulled him down. It took too long to cast magic spells. Then, he used wind magic to knock a few against the wall. Finally, he flew faster, just few yards from the door when-

_THUNK_

Izaya looked down at his chest to see a long arrow protruding out of his chest.

He crashed to the floor like a bird with broken wings.

Izaya gasped as it punctured his lung. He was glad it was not his heart, but he started coughing and coughing, blood spewing out of his mouth.

He could make it.

He needed to get out of here.

He could make it. He could make it out!

Izaya looked up to see how close the door to the entrance was. How it was just few yards away. Just take these few steps and he would be out. He would be free.

He would be free.

Suddenly he felt dizzy as the images in his vision started to overlap. He was once again tied down, his chest ripped open. He screamed in pain as one of the priests gleefully started to rev up the chainsaw and drill into his bones.

The door was right there.

The door was within his reach all the time.

But the runes prevented him from casting devastating magic. The runes kept him weak.

If only he could reach the door!

“Not now… dammit… not now!” Izaya cringed and tried to shake off the spell, but once triggered, he was _stuck_ in that dream-like illusion world that overrid reality. He was _stuck_ helplessly as the doors overlapped, the one in the basement dungeon where he lived for fifteen years… and his reality. He knew it wasn’t real, but he was unable to stop himself as the two doors became one in his mind.

Izaya felt himself being roughly rolled so he faced the ceiling.

One of the men was panting in fear as he held the crossbow. Aiming it point blank at Izaya’s eye.

The double image continued to overlap as Horoda smirked, unlike the man before him. He held the silver cross with an end sharp as an ice pick.

He ~~They~~ let loose.

Izaya screamed.

 

* * *

 

Shizuo ran towards the smell. He apologized as he pushed past the townsfolk, all of them angrily yelling at the priest to watch it, some even muttering how a priest shouldn’t act so rude. But Shizuo had no time to stop and apologize properly. The smell was still too faint — sometimes the wind carried it in the wrong direction. All he could do was try to follow it the best he could, running into dead-ends where he had to scale the rooftops.

He continued to run through the maze of the town, sometimes running in circles, and sometimes backtracking as the smell faintly disappeared.

Suddenly, the smell of Izaya’s stinking smell grew heavy.

The pungent smell of blood.

It could only mean one thing. In fear, Shizuo ran as fast as he could toward that smell.

He was out of breath even with his super strength as he grew closer. It was some warehouse or a small barn. The door was locked, but it didn’t matter as he kicked it open. There was no one inside save for rolls of hay and few crates, but he could hear panicked voices screaming, “Where’s more silver nails?!”, “Dammit, hold him down, hold him _down!_ ”, “Oh god, we’re all gonna die, we’re all gonna _die_!”, “Onions! Do onions work?! Shit, do we even have time to go to the church for holy water?!”, “Shut up and help me with this!” “SOMEONE MAKE A WOODEN CROSS!”

It was coming from below.

Shizuo quickly pushed the hay to find a trapdoor. From what he could hear from the voices, Izaya needed him. Now.

He quickly swung open the trapdoor to find a small hole, which he jumped down without hesitation, crashing to the floor due to the long fall. In front of him was an iron door with a iron wheel to turn open.

He could hear the screams.

Not just the men screaming.

It was Izaya’s scream that pierced through the stricken priest’s heart.

By now, Shizuo knew the worst had happened as he kicked and kicked. When it only made the iron door bend, the priest grabbed his golden cross and slammed it against the door, shouting the incantation for a gravity spell.

Immediately the door twisted inward, as if there was a void sucking it in, before it imploded, crumbling the rocky foundations near it with a loud crash and a storm of dust.

Shizuo coughed as he stepped inside. He could hear the men stop to cough as the dust blew in and started to settle.

The priest had made it in, but the nauseating sight shocked him to the core of his being, the vile bile rising up to his throat as he forced down to swallow.

There were men around Izaya. About ten or so. All of them had been holding his limbs down.

There was a man on top of him with a crossbow, coughing.

And arrows puncturing Izaya from both his eyes sockets, one arrow to his mouth, several to his chest. His arms, legs and wings were spread apart and systematically punctured with arrows as if he was crucified to the floor.

Shizuo **raged!**

He felt his body move on his own.  
 _  
CRASH._

_CRUNCH._

There were blood curling screams and white noise as he ravaged like a beast, punching and kicking everything in sight, his fingers crushing something that felt like an apple. Blood poured out from the explosion between his hands instead of apple juice.

More screams as he crushed something with his fist when it connected. Skin and bones were pulverized as the fist met the ground instead of meeting limbs.

He threw whatever he could grab into the air until there was nothing in his reach.

He would have gone even further if he didn’t hear a baby crying.

He stopped.

He froze, turning to hear the cry of a helpless child screaming and screaming…

Crying like that baby vampire held by the woman begging for its life. Begging for one more chance. Begging for just one sliver of mercy.

Shizuo huffed as his senses came to. He looked around the sickening bloodbath and started to shiver.

He stared at his hands covered in blood, his outfit soaked in the red that wasn’t his.

He turned again to face the woman who had been kidnapped, crying in fear as she held her crying baby, trying to make the child stop.

“It’s… okay. I’m…” Shizuo walked over to try to untie the bonds but the woman shrieked in fear. He stopped to stare at his blood covered hands.

He was a monster.

He knew that.

He knew that more than anyone else.

Shizuo took a deep breath and turned to check on Izaya first. He was breathing. He sighed in relief.

Though he wanted to feed him blood right now, it was probably a very bad idea to have witness see a priest give a vampire blood. Though he wanted to pull those arrows out, he didn’t want to hurt Izaya even more before he could be treated properly.

“Izaya, can you hear me?”

He saw the vampire swallow and try to nod, but he shivered instead. Shizuo flinched at the sight. With the arrows impaling him to the ground, Izaya could not move his head and looked as if he was crying blood. Shizuo wasn’t sure if the arrows had pierced through Izaya’s skull, but that one to the mouth… and the ones in his chest, wrist, wings and thighs… Shizuo couldn’t even fathom how much pain Izaya must be in right now.

He had failed Izaya once again and the guilt crippled the young priest-to-be. But he had no time for remorse.

“You’ll be okay. I’m here. You trust me, right? Just don’t nod. I’ll get you out,” Shizuo kept repeating and reassuring Izaya as if he was really trying to convince himself that everything would be okay.

He stood up to check his surroundings. It seemed that he had luckily only punched the kidnappers, and though most of them were groaning in pain, none looked dead. If they were treated right away, they would survive.

Then Shizuo walked over to the kidnapped townsmen, despite them shrieking and huddling further away. He started to untie them quickly, apologizing, telling them to get out of here and maybe grab a doctor. As he freed each of them, they all ran screaming without thanking the priest, all too scared of the monster they had seen instead of the hero. That was alright, Shizuo thought to himself grimly. He had to attend to Izaya, too.

Once all of them were freed, the priest hurried back to the vampire.

“This is gonna hurt flea, but I’ll feed you soon. So … bear with it okay?”

Shizuo quickly started to yank each arrow out. He knew that Izaya could bleed to death if he didn’t get treated soon, but he needed to pull all of them out before the vampire could heal, otherwise the healing effect would be pointless. He flinched again at every whimper from the vampire. Izaya was gritting his teeth and was doing his best not to scream when the priest pulled one arrow at a time.

“Just one more, flea. Hang in there.” Shizuo grabbed the last arrow lodged into Izaya’s abdomen when…

“Over here! He is in there! The monster in the priest’s disguise! And a vampire! They are in there!! Hurry!!”

Shizuo froze.

“Shit…” The priest quickly grabbed the bleeding vampire. He didn’t have the time to give him blood, they needed to get out of here. Right now.

Shizuo held the heavily wounded vampire close to him, wrapping his body, wings and all with his cloak, one hand protectively around his head, and started to run. He climbed up the trapdoor and ran for the entrance as the townsmen poured in. Shizuo burst through the front entrance before they could realize that it was _him_ they were looking for. But after quick shots, the men reacted and started chasing after him with pitchforks. The priest cursed as he entered the busy streets. Already there were some people screaming, while others didn’t know what was going on, the crowd was gathering too fast. Shizuo looked around. It would be a bad idea to go to the center of the town. He couldn’t fight the whole town. Annd besides, he shouldn’t even be fighting humans. If the word got to the church that he beat humans to save a ‘vampire’, he’d be in serious trouble! So he turned and quickly ran towards the gates.

The town was very close to the high mountains and soon Shizuo was stepping into the snow as the sun slowly ebbed downwards. He huffed as his breath turned to mist. He constantly looked down to make sure Izaya was still breathing. He was bleeding heavily and it sickened Shizuo to see those once beautiful eyes gauged out, but he grit his teeth and ran as the townsmen drew closer. They had torches now and they knew the terrain far better than the new journeyman hunter, so they were gaining on him.

If only Shizuo had the time to cut his finger and feed Izaya….

But he didn’t dare rest. The men behind him were too close. And if he were to cut his hand now, he could pour only a bit into Izaya’s mouth before the men could catch up to his footsteps imprinted on the snow. Then he would have to grab Izaya’s bleeding body and run again.

And it scared him.

It was cowardly thing, Shizuo knew, since the vampire was clearly in pain and dying but…

… it still scared him.

… that the vampire blood could accidentally mix into his veins.

 

* * *

 

_“Brother Heiwajima. Right now is not nap time.”_

_Shizuo moaned as a scroll hit his head lightly. He looked up to see the red priest, Father Akabayashi, smiling at him. He yawned and rubbed his eyes. When had he fallen asleep?_

_“I know my class might be boring, but you’ll be in trouble if you don’t know magic during your missions.” Father Akabayashi smiled as the class laughed. He would have looked gentle if it wasn’t for that scar over his one eye which made him look more like a thug despite his kind personality. Apparently, he’d been stabbed by a vampire in one of his missions. Now he was the professor at the Hunters Academy in Magic classes._

_Shizuo stretched and sighed. This was so pointless. As if he would_ ever _use magic! He was supernaturally strong. He would just beat up the vampires, this was so useless!_

_“Ahh… I know you’re thinking that you don’t need to learn magic since you’re strong… but missions are done in groups. Not only should you know what kind of magic the vampires use, you should know what kind of magic your teammates use so you can act accordingly.”_

_Shizuo grumbled under his breath. He was ridiculously strong, right? He was sure he could take on solo missions immediately, surpass all the dumb small missions given to junior members._

_Father Akabayashi walked back to the front of the class and stood by the chalkboard._

_“Now then, pay attention. Blood magic and blood contracts are the most powerful spells one can make because it uses the life energy of your own soul. This is why vampires drink blood. And that vampires could use charms to feed their blood to a human which creates a strong bond. When you’re attacking a vampire, you must_ never _for any reason touch the blood of the vampire, especially if you have an open wound. We do not know how strong these bonds could become, but the most dangerous issue isn’t the bond. A human can turn into a semi-vampire when they have enough vampire blood in their body. As of yet, we, being humane, never experimented on humans to know exactly how much quantity is needed for humans to turn into vampire. Nor have we have any documented cases or witnesses. So as a precaution, you must_ never _touch the blood of the vampire. And again, I emphasize, if you have wound on your body, close it as soon as possible.”_

_Shizuo rolled his eyes. Whatever. It wasn’t as if the vampire’s claws and fangs were sharp enough to ever cut his body. This was pointless. Though he understood now why the priests had made sure he just cut his finger and dropped the blood into the vampire’s mouth instead of letting the vampire directly suck him. The vampire down in the basement had been covered in wounds for years._

_The young blond apprentice shivered at the thought and quickly tried to forget about the vampire down below. He needed to focus on this dumb class, useless information or not._

 

* * *

 

Of course, now, Shizuo knew that the other reason why he wasn’t allowed to have the vampire suck his finger was due to the lust it caused in his body, he was afraid to feed Izaya and touch his bleeding body in case he himself turned into a vampire.

“Hang in there…. Maybe just down this valley and…” Shizuo huffed as he continued to talk to Izaya. He felt guilty keeping Izaya in pain, but he still had to be cautious. Izaya’s breath was weak but his cold puffs of breath told the priest that he was still hanging in there.

Shizuo came to an abrupt stop when a young girl in a thick cloak with a hood that covered her face stood before him with a lantern.

The priest blinked. No, wait, not a young girl, perhaps? The black haired girl had a huge bosom. Shizuo took a sharp intake of breath. He hoped she wasn’t part of that group chasing after him, but he wasn’t sure.

“Uhh, miss? Sorry but could you please move out of the way?” Shizuo wasn’t sure if he should just try to run past her, but…

The girl lifted her hood and Shizuo’s eyes widened. The girl’s jet black hair was cropped to her shoulders and her face looked to be teenaged, but it was her eyes that caught his attention.

They glowed red.

She looked at Shizuo silently and lifted her head as the townsfolks’ shouts were growing louder and louder. Shizuo started to hold Izaya close against him, trying to gauge his situation. Should he fight her? Run the other way? The trail had become steeper, the trees taller and thicker and there weren’t many choices. The snow wasn’t hiding his footprints and he was running blindly.

“Look I…” Shizuo started but she interrupted him.

“Who are you?” the girl’s eyes narrowed.

“What do you mean who am I?” Shizuo looked at her in bewilderment and anger. He had no time for this! Why the fuck should he introduce himself to a random strange girl in the middle of the mountains?!!!

“What is a hunter doing out here… with Earl Orihara who had disappeared for some decades? Did you hurt him?”

And before Shizuo could even reply, a sword came out of her hand to his astonishment and she brandished the sword before him while holding onto the lantern with the other hand.

“Answer me. Why are you holding Earl Orihara who look mortally injured?”

Shizuo’s mouth gaped open. Wait… Earl?

“You. You know Izaya?”


	11. Chapter 11

“I have never heard of a hunter saving a vampire from humans before.” The girl did not answer Shizuo’s question in regards to whether she knew Izaya or not as she stared at him and the armored plates on his limbs. Instead she lifted her hand that held the sword and Shizuo watched in amazement as the blade withdrew into her palm as if it were a sheath. She held just the lantern in front of her as if to take a better look at the hunter.

“Do you trust me?” Her voice was neutral but the lantern gave a sinister glint that shone off of her glasses.

“Like hell I will!” Shizuo panicked as he looked back, cradling Izaya’s head close to him protectively. The noise and the torch lights were drawing closer and closer!

“That’s a good answer.” The corners of her lips curled mysteriously for a brief moment. Then her glasses glistened as her expression changed to a more serious one. “But you have no choice. Please stand back.”

She walked forward to stand between him and the approaching torches bobbing in the distance. Then she blew out the lantern.

“Do not move nor speak.”

“What the hell are you talking about?!”

“Trust me.”

Shizuo tensed up and took short breaths as he could now see the townsmen’s angry faces approach. He quickly decided to stay quiet and follow her order for now. Worst came to worst… he could try to fight them. Holding his breath, his apprehension slowly changed to a verge of panic as the men came closer.

But the girl remained still and unafraid.

He watched in astonishment as the men parted in front of them and moved past them like a wave breaking against a rock. They were in plain view — it wasn’t as if they were hidden or in complete darkness without the lantern. Still, Shizuo stared in shock as the angry townsmen marched around them, obviously searching hard and yet totally walking past them as if they were nothing but another tree in this massive forest.

“Come,” she said once the men had all passed by. Shizuo turned his head to watch as the last remnants of the men walked away calling for his blood. “We must hurry. The Earl is in grave danger still.”

Shizuo stared back at Anri and took one last look behind him as the angry men continued to shout and run up the mountain. He gulped in bewilderment and hurriedly followed the young girl who led, her lantern bobbing up and down with the flickering candle.

She was fast, the trees blurring as Shizuo chased her. He was having difficulty keeping up. She was definitely a vampire, her feet light as they barely touched the snow while Shizuo sank in to his knees.

Shizuo frowned as they came to a dead end of tangled trees and thickets of thorns. But the girl with glasses stood before them as if she had arrived at her destination.

_"Decantemori Darindum Airin.”_

Shizuo’s brows furrowed. That was definitely a vampire’s magic spell. With the incantation, the thorns and vines started to move to reveal a cave, much to his bewilderment.

“This way.” She pointed as she walked inside. Shizuo ducked and followed carefully.  

The tunnel was short but opened up to a valley with a city and a large castle. Shizuo stared with his eyes wide open as he realized he was entering a secret vampire lair.

“Welcome home, Mother.” The two men who were guarding the tunnel gate bowed. But once Shizuo came into the light, the guards froze and quickly pointed their heavy spears at the intruder.

“No, they are with me.” The girl, ‘Mother’, raised her hand and the two guards obeyed automatically, going back to their stationary mode with their spears down. “Go run and report that we have an injured vampire who will need immediate treatment.”

“Yes Mother.” They bowed as one of them ran towards the castle while the other stood guard. Shizuo stared at the strange, almost robotic response from the men before he followed the girl deeper into the village.

Many of the villagers looked wary but did not question as Shizuo walked through carrying the heavily bleeding vampire. They all parted ways for their ‘Mother’, all of them bowing deeply as she briskly ran towards the castle.

Shizuo had never seen a vampire’s lair before. Whenever one was found, the entire hunters organization gathered for the raid. Sometimes, if the lair was large enough, other churches’ organizations came as well. Shizuo was too young to join them before; the last one was found more than five years ago when the blond had still been a trainee. The village looked no different from a small city save for the massive castle near the back. There were many vampires going about their business and Shizuo noticed a few of them were even humans and several hybrid children amongst them.

Shizuo trembled a bit at the discovery. If he reported this… he could easily destroy them. And yet here was this young girl who trusted him enough to bring him to the vampire’s lair to help him save Izaya.

The young hunter felt very conflicted as he was led inside the castle.

It didn’t take long for them to arrive at the front gate. The vampire with a white lab coat was there with a makeshift bed. Shizuo carefully laid Izaya on top. The vampire was breathing but just barely. He didn’t look conscious anymore and that worried him.

Immediately all the guards surrounded Shizuo, pointing their long spears at him, trapping him effectively in the center of their circled enclosure. He stared calmly as he wasn’t really afraid — he could take them all down very easily. Rather, he was more worried for Izaya.

“What’s this?” he asked the girl who stood also protectively around Izaya.

“Insurance, young hunter. I do not trust you. I cannot have you report back to your authorities until the Earl is healed.”

Shizuo nodded. He understood that if they had wanted him killed, they would have done so long ago. He just wanted to wash his hands so they weren’t covered with blood and feed Izaya but… perhaps the doctors here could do much more help than he could.

“You’re going to make him better, right? Will Izaya be okay with you?” Shizuo stared straight into the girl’s eyes to make sure he could trust them, ignoring all those pointy spears directed his way.

“He is one of us. He will be safe with me. I will guarantee you that he will receive the best treatment available.” The girl nodded, her eyes serious and strong.

Shizuo nodded back and straightened up. He looked wistfully as the doctor and the girl hurriedly took the makeshift stretcher into the castle. Though the girl held a defensive yet fierce gaze when staring at him, a tall hunter almost twice her height, she held a slight apprehensive and concerned look towards Izaya and that was enough for Shizuo to try to trust him in their hands. It seemed as if they were Izaya’s friends and Shizuo hoped that his gut feeling was right.

The guards led Shizuo down to the dungeon. He didn’t mind it as they locked him up into a cell with a pile of dirty hay and stone walls that stank of blood, vomit, and feces. The iron bars looked sturdy enough but the blond knew that if he felt like it, he could bend them open any time.

Rather than worried about his situation, Shizuo sat near the cold iron doors, waiting anxiously for them to heal Izaya. Sometimes he paced around the dungeon, staying near enough the entrance to hear if there were footsteps to tell him any news but not too close so the guards felt uncomfortable. He didn’t want altercations after all.

Shizuo couldn’t tell how long he had waited. It could have been only minutes but it felt like hours. But eventually he heard tiny hurried footsteps with marching guards right behind them. He quickly rushed to the entrance to see the young girl the others call ‘Mother,’ her face stricken with panic and out of breath.

“You. What did you do to the Earl?” Her eyes were flinty and Shizuo guessed what had happened.

“I take it that the normal amount of blood isn’t healing him?” the young journeyman priest asked anxiously. And he could see her eyes narrow in confirmed suspicion. “Hey, hey. Look. I can help. Only my blood can-”  
  
“That wasn’t my question. I asked, what did you do to the Earl?” She cut him off and her voice was dangerously cold as she demanded a proper answer.

“We don’t have much time to waste. Izaya will die without my blood and I don’t have the time to convince you with words right now nor do I have the time to fight all your guards to get to him. Saving him is our priority, right?” Shizuo talked fast, hoping he would get through her. Sure, he could fight his way through, but he would rather not fight a whole city of vampires when he’d barely escaped from a town of humans.

The female vampire searched the blond’s eyes, trying to decide if she should trust him. Eventually she sighed, motioning the guards standing behind her.

“Release the prisoner.”  
  
“No need.” Shizuo waved it off as he grabbed the iron bars and twisted them before the guards could run to get the keys.  The vampires gasped at the supernatural strength of a normal human and took a step back as the young hunter stepped through between the iron bars as thick as a man’s wrist.   
  
“Sorry about the door.  Err… I can fix it later. But first, we gotta hurry.”

‘Mother’ nodded and they all rushed to the adjoining tower that held Izaya.  The doors swung open as Shizuo stepped into the large, well furnished room. Izaya was lying in a soft bed with comforters… though they were soaked in blood. There were tubes going through his mouth with IV drops of blood but it obviously wasn’t working. There were many vampires around him wearing white gowns who seemed like they were professional healers, but they all looked at a loss for what to do. Shizuo cringed at the sight. Izaya had lost so much blood…

“Water?” Shizuo asked as he held up his hands covered in dried blood.  One of the female vampires in white gown quickly grabbed a nearby water basin and held it for Shizuo to wash his hands. Then he dipped into his coat to draw out his runed dagger. A few vampires hissed and took a step forward to attack but their leader vampire held up her hand, signaling them to leave the hunter be.

Unmolested, Shizuo took a step forward as he slashed his palm. The sweet scent of his blood permeated the air and already Izaya sniffed and coughed, trying to lounge for the blood. The guards grabbed Izaya’s limbs and held him down, trying to remain firm and not rough, knowing how vampires were during their blood lust.  Shizuo cringed at the sight but he held his hand above Izaya’s mouth and balled it into a fist, his fingers digging into the wound as the stream of blood dripped down into the raven’s mouth.

The piercing scream was similar to the time Shizuo had given blood to the burnt half-dead corpse not too long ago and it hurt to hear them again. Izaya screamed in blood lust as he drank the dripping blood, practically clawing at the air, trying to grab the source instinctively so he could latch onto it and draw more with his fangs.  But all four strong guards were on top of Izaya, holding him down as Shizuo’s expression grew grim and dug his fingers deeper.

The scream died down as Izaya’s blood lust calmed after a quarter of an hour of wailing. He was healing. Even Shizuo could see the gaps of wounds patching up.

“Phenomenal. How extraordinary.” One of the wisen vampires in white spoke up, pushing up his glasses.  “The Earl is healing four times faster than normal. Nay, perhaps five times!”

After Izaya seemed to have drank his fill and sunk back to his bed unconsciously, the worst seemed over. Shizuo sighed in relief as he drew back his hand and one of the nurse vampires stepped forward to wrap a white bandage around the wound.

The ‘Mother’ did not speak the entire time as she watched and observed coldly. Once Shizuo was done, she spoke quietly to the priest, “Please return to your cell.”

They all knew that the prison wouldn’t hold the hunter, but Shizuo agreed with a nod.  They all still did not trust him and he was sure they never really could. In the end, he was a hunter. His existence here in this city threatened their lives.

“Ah, just one thing. C-can you… erm…. give him extra blankets?” Shizuo asked plaintively. The young leader tilted her head in confusion.

“A-a lot of blankets? And, oh. Er… maybe a fire place would be nice. Erm…. I-Izaya gets cold easily. He doesn’t like places with stone walls…”  
  
Shizuo remembered what had caused all this unnecessary event. It was because they fought this morning. Izaya had said he was cold and Shizuo had ignored him, heartlessly throwing him out.

And the hunter regretted it deeply.

‘Mother’ seemed confused but she nodded in compliance. After confirming that, Shizuo returned to the dungeon below, in a different cell, he noticed. One with a heavier iron door rather than just bars.

No matter. It wouldn’t take long to break this one if he wanted to get out. So he sat down and waited. At least Izaya was safe now, and he sighed in relief as he rubbed the bandage on his hand.

The vampire still wrapped it for him gently. Despite knowing that he was a hunter.

It wasn’t all bad, he supposed, as he closed his eyes and waited in the dark, dreary dungeon where time seemed meaningless.

**  
  
  
  
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**  
  
  
  
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The Earl Orihara Izaya had a splitting headache when he woke up. He was wrapped in bandages and he felt sore everywhere. But he was cleaned it seemed, in a soft warm bed, in a luxurious room with old paintings of familiar faces from the ancient lineage of Sonohar-....

Wait, Sonohara family line?!

Izaya quickly got up, wincing at the pain in his stomach.  But he focused on the paintings and sure enough. He knew where he was. As to how he got here, he had no idea.

The curtains were drawn and the pale full moon glimmered in the sky. The many candles flicked as they illuminated the room brightly along with a large fire place near the bed that roared in full flames to keep the room warm even in the nights of the cold mountain air. It was a lavish guest room with a soft feather canopy bed, rich velvet cushioned chairs, floors with warm fur rugs. There were beautiful crimson tapestries covering the walls to brighten the room with old tales of vampires, ancient battles and histories that were more legends.

It almost felt like he had come back home.

As if on cue, there was a knock on the door before a maid entered.

“You are summoned, my lord.” She bowed and waited as Izaya sat up. “Do you need any assistance?” she asked as she stood there, waiting for her orders. It was really as if Izaya had come back home with all the pampering he had grown up on.

“Ah, no need. I can dress myself. You can wait outside for me.”  He waved her off and watched as she bowed and closed the door behind her.  Izaya chuckled to himself. He never had to dress himself before he was captured. He understood how, he just never had to.

He got into the outfit laid out for him, a princely embroidered blue vest with his pants and shirt. He actually missed the plain cotton feel of Vorona’s handmade shirt as the satin and silk clung to him softly.   
  
Finally, donning his cloak, he stepped out. The maid guided him to the hall that looked like a throne room with coat of arms branded onto the shields and weapons hung against the walls. At the end was a large throne and behind it were walls of stained glass, beautifully colored to tell a tale. And above it all was the large stained glass window of a blooming rose. Though the sun was no longer there, the full moon colored the floors with its pale light. And looking out the window was a young vampire girl with glasses who had brought the hunter to her own city.

“You’ve summoned for me?” Izaya lightly bowed, not getting onto his knees, but a nod to show respect. He took her hand and kissed the back of it.

“It’s been awhile, Orihara-san,” she said simply, acknowledging him.

“I guess it was thanks to Anri-chan I’m alive?” Izaya chuckled as he went back to his semi-casual conversation tone now that the formalities were met.

“Ah, no. Actually… you would have to thank your young hunter who was with you… All we did was provide you a place to rest and clean.”

There was a hint of frown in Anri’s eyes but Izaya was a bit too surprised to notice them.

“Shizu-chan is here?” Izaya realized he was missing a large chunk of the story while he had blacked out.

“Yes, if that’s the priest’s name.” Anri nodded as she slightly tilted her head to face Izaya while still standing near the window.

“He had asked for more blankets for you. And a warm place by the fire. He even specifically said it’d be preferred not to be a stoned…” Anri paused, her eyes widening briefly in surprise to see the Earl’s face. He looked bewildered but his eyes softened. “...wall.” Anri’s words trailing off before she finished her sentence. Noting the Earl’s softer countenance, she continued, "But since the castle is made of stone, we did the best we could." There was more here than met the eyes, Anri thought to herself as she watched the Earl carefully.

“Oh he did, did he?” Izaya smiled at that as his eyes wavered side-long as if he was lost in thought, the kind of a smile that Anri wasn’t used to seeing on the Earl. It had no malice or sinister expression but it actually looked… genuine.

But Anri steeled herself quickly, dismissing the thought. She knew not to trust the Earl who was clearly incapable of such a genuine smile. It only made her more cautious. What was he planning this time?

“I was waiting for…. a certain business negotiation that night when we found your hunter with you.” She continued instead, “You were bleeding out. And yet none of our healers’ spells nor the blood of our human folks could save you. So, tell me. How did the hunter bind you?” Anri moved onto the topic at large. “Nothing worked on you, Orihara-san. We tried all the humans’ blood in our city, many of them spilled for you. But nothing worked until… that priest gave his.”  Her glasses glinted against the moonlight. “Why would you bind yourself to the Hunter’s Organization, Orihara Izaya? What are you planning?”

“You think so highly of me.” Izaya shrugged as he waved off the grave accusation of treason she was hinting at so casually.

“Answers, Orihara-san. I have threatened the safety of our city and children for your life. You owe me that much.” She hissed.

“I didn’t ask to be treated. I’m pretty sure Shizu-chan had everything under control.”

Izaya was bluffing. He had no memory or recollection of how he had gotten here. Of course he knew that Anri must have helped tremendously. But he needed to play his cards right. And sure enough, he noticed the queen bee bristle in anger silently and he couldn’t help but smile.

“You are playing a dangerous game, Orihara-san,” she continued coldly. “Do you plan to betray your own kin? Did that hunter.... made you his servant against your will? If so, I can provide assistance in removing him. Or perhaps… you’re playing a double agent?”

Izaya burst out laughing until he had to wince and calm down as his stomach gave a sharp stabbing pain. 

“Me? A servant? Please. If anything, it's the other way around. And do I look like someone who’d play a double agent?”

Anri furrowed her eyebrows, trying to understand.   
  
“No, you’re not really the type to choose a side.”

“Exactly. I’m on no one’s side, just my own. Still the same selfish Orihara." Izaya grinned. But he quickly shrugged nonchalantly before he offended the Queen further.

“Alright, alright. Since you apparently saved my skin even though you’ve said yourself that Shizuo was the one who actually did the act, I’ll go ahead and let you in on my secret.” The Earl stepped forward into the moonlight onto the dais that Sonohara stood. He leaned forward, one arm on her shoulder as he whispered.

“Don’t you want to find out what’s really going on between the Dollars and the Hunters Organization?”

Sonohara didn’t turn her head to face him but her eyes flickered.

“Then it is true? Are they really collaborating?”

“I have no proof yet but… I have a few hints.” He shrugged as he stepped away. Now speaking in a normal voice, he continued, “And that monster hunter was my key to get inside the church.” Izaya played it off. That was actually a flat out lie. He didn’t have such luxurious choice given to him when he was chained and locked for almost two decades and his only way out was to agree with Shizuo, but he needed to bluff himself out of this mess. He couldn’t let Sonohara Anri go tell all the leaders of the vampires that there was a traitor running loose in this world after all. Not that he was a traitor, but he sure didn’t want to be branded one just because he was stuck with drinking only one hunter's blood currently.

“I don’t believe you,” the Queen of vampires said though her voice wavered.

“Of course you don’t. No one does.” Izaya shrugged again nonchalantly. “But you can’t afford not to gamble on the bet that I may be right. You’ll let me go, won’t you?” He winked. “Send my regards to Ryugamine Mikado-kun. Except of course, don’t tell him my whereabouts or that I have a pet hunting dog.”

‘Was that all he was to him?’ Anri wondered. Was …. that blond young hunter just a ‘pet dog’ for the Earl?

She might have believed that. In fact, the Earl was notorious for turning everyone into his worshippers. But then what was that soft genuine smile for? What kind of trick was that…. Was it because he had wanted to Anri to believe that the young hunter was just a cute dog? Or was there more?

Even more importantly, was the Dollars really working with the church? How much had the Earl found out? Was he working with someone? Who? Which organization?

Was it with Kida Masaomi and the Yellow Scarves? But the Earl had broken ties with them many decades ago...

There were so many questions crowding the young Queen’s head that she sighed softly. She knew she wouldn’t be getting anymore answers from the Earl.

“How is… she?” the girl asked instead wearily.

“Hmm? You mean Mika-chan? She’s doing rather well. She’s very happy to be serving her beloved Seiji I think… well that was more than 15 years ago. I haven’t checked in on them since. I’m sure they are fine as ever at the castle. Sickeningly lovey-dovey I suppose. Unless Namie-san managed to do something about it while I was away from home but I had asked her to behave. Who knows with that woman, but last time I checked, they were getting along on the surface, so I'm sure they are fine.” Izaya stretched then winced again in pain, as he prattled in a conversational tone despite the topic obviously hinting at more. Anri knew that Izaya knew such a nonchalant answer of possible violence would make her anxious and she remembered yet again why she hated him back then.

“I think I better head to bed. It’s a long journey back.”

Anri nodded as she turned. She did realize that the Earl never asked for the whereabouts of his current ‘pet dog’’s location and she wondered if it was ill-mannered of her to keep the hunter in the dungeon.

Perhaps it was all a facade to continue making her believe that the hunter was just a pet dog and nothing more. Sonohara Anri could not tell.

“Oh, by the way. I do have a solution for your dilemma,” Izaya said offhandedly.

“A dilemma?”

“Yes. You’ve been having problems with population expansion and food supplies, haven’t you?” The Earl asked shrewdly as he stopped in his midstep and turned to face the Queen once more, his crimson eyes glowing in the dark.

Sonohara Anri did not answer as she stood still silently.

"I figured as much. Everything makes sense now that I know your city is so close to town, you telling me that you had a business negotiation, and the townsmen who kidnap the unwanted homeless or travellers that most people won’t notice. Your vampires are diminishing in numbers, meaning your position of power is at threat. You need new fresh vampires, new muscles... and to get that, you need to entice them with fresh supply of humans. It's the same problem many are having save for the Dollars of course."

He smirked as the Queen's eyes narrowed dangerously.

"Don't worry. I'm not here to profit from this information or sell it to Mikado or Kida or anyone else for that matter. Like I said, I have a solution for you."

"I will listen. But I can't promise I will follow your advice."

"Good enough." Izaya nodded. "Use the power of Saika."

"Pardon?" Anri looked surprised.

"I do know the secrets of Saika you know. That legendary sword that’s only passed down to the heir of the Sonohara family. I know that it can control men and vampires alike with just a single stab, a slice or even a poke. You need more men and vampires? Just force them to join. No need to buy homeless humans from slavers and offer them a home and kindness. How many of them ran away in fear once they found out that they were sold to a vampire's lair? I bet you had to kill a bunch. And those who are here don't trust you, forever living in constant fear....am I right?"

The Queen looked troubled, unable to refute the accusation. "But forcing them with Saika is cruel and inhuman. I wish them to join us willingly."

Izaya chuckled and slyly winked. "They won't be joining you."

"How... do you mean?"

"Tsk, tsk.... young vampires these days... they are so used to drinking blood from a cup already predrawn for them, they don't even remember the rudimentary basics." Izaya sighed theatrically. "What I'm suggesting is, have the Saika control the humans to come to you in their sleep. You can draw a tiny bit of blood that's unnoticeable. Then have them go back home. They won't even know what had conspired at night. Just nothing more than a mosquito's bite. You don't have to convince them, house them or hunt and buy them. If you draw a little bit of blood from everyone, it'd be plenty."

Izaya continued. “As for your vampire army, why not give the willing humans a drop of your halfling’s blood? With just a drop, they may remain human more than vampire. And you will have your army without sacrificing all the food supply into your zombie vampire army.”

Izaya yawned as Anri considered the option.

"You seem to have a lot to think about so I'll head to bed and leave after my nap. I do suggest that you move your city. I don't think I can stop my pet from reporting your location."

"The preparation for our departure has commenced. Do not worry." Anri nodded.

"Probably good idea. For my idea to work, you'd need to locate yourself closer to a larger city, but remote. And I'll try to slow Shizuo down on our way .... back." Izaya stopped himself before he accidentally slipped the word 'home'.

Home. He was already thinking of that deplorable church as his 'home'. It was an ironic and bitter thought.

Anri simply nodded, unaware of Izaya’s inner conflict. "You have my gratitude."

Orihara bowed one last time, as gracefully as he could despite his wounds, then headed back to his bed chambers.

**  
  
  
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“I said I’m fine, Shizu-chan,”  Izaya sighed in exasperation as the priest was giving him another look over.  As soon as Shizuo saw Izaya coming across the hallway from the waiting room, the young priest had bolted towards him and gave him a fierce hug in front of everyone present. The Earl was rather surprised and embarrassed at such a public display of affection and had pushed him away. Then Shizuo had started to make sure that Izaya had fully healed, asked him if he was warm, if he needed more fur coats, (Anri had graciously gifted him a thick luxurious fur coat for the journey down), did he need more blood, and was he feeling sick or was hurt anywhere. The raven haired vampired had to calm him down as they were still in the presence of the Queen who merely stared at them from where she stood, a bit surprised but silent.

The guards had allowed Shizuo out of his cell at dawn, got him to a nicer room with a bath. He had his first warm bath in awhile, cleaning off all the dirt and once he got out, he felt better. He had clean clothes to wear, his older clothes folded and packed away. He was allowed to wear his armor and even carry his weapon, his large golden cross. He was told to sit at the waiting room for Izaya. Then they were free to go.

Shizuo had been anxiously waiting, pacing up and down the whole time.  The guards in the room looked just as nervous with Shizuo, but the vampires held their ground as it was their duty to be watchful. Izaya had no way of knowing that Shizuo had spent the day and night previously in a cell but he was glad to see Shizuo looked clean and well dressed. When Izaya came to the large waiting room with the Queen, Shizuo rushed over to make sure he was alright, Izaya’s health being his primary concern. Once Izaya had confirmed for the fourth time or so that he was alright, only then did Shizuo remembered his manners to nod to the Queen… to which Izaya grabbed the blond and forced him to bend lower for a slightly more proper bow, Shizuo grunting awkwardly.

“Uhh… so… should I call you princess? Or Your Highness?” Shizuo fidgeted as he stood up, not knowing how to deal with royalties. He never met one before and the honorific came out forced.

“You may call me Sonohara.” The Queen gave him a small smile.   
  
“Uhh… so Sonohara… san,” Shizuo fumbled, to which Izaya gave a small sigh and rolled up his eyes. At least he could have used a “-sama” honorific. The guards around the Queen looked a bit offended by the honest priest who didn’t understand the particularities of court etiquette despite the Queen’s composed demeanor.

“I don’t want to fight you or your…. friends…” Shizuo made a wide gesture with his hands, not knowing what to call her subjects. “But when I do go back, I will have to … report what I found here.” Shizuo asked plainly and honestly and the Queen looked a bit surprised by such innocent request.  Anri smiled again a bit more at such a refreshingly uncorrupted eyes of the priest who obviously did not understand the politics behind such a request.

Before Anri could reply, Izaya stepped in, “Don’t worry Shizu-chan. It’s already taken care of.”

“Really?” Shizuo looked back at Izaya and then at Anri. “You guys… aren’t going to hurt the humans in the city down below from this mountain?”

“Well, technically….” Izaya started to say, but this time the Queen spoke for her own behalf.

“You don’t have to worry, young priest. By the time you’ve arrived to your church with the report, we would no longer be here.”

Shizuo looked a bit relieved though there was a small frown on his face. He obviously still did not approve of the vampires hurting the humans even if they switched locations. Izaya knew that look and tapped his side.

“Like I said, I took care of it. It’s not exactly what you’re thinking, so don’t worry about it, Shizu-chan.”

“We’ve made arrangements, young priest, with the humans of our village. We won’t be kidnapping humans anymore. We will allow only the humans who wish to stay with us, stay.” Anri explained calmly, though as a Queen, she had no real reasons to explain to an outsider, a vampire hunter at that. Still, she knew and understood the potential danger the hunter’s existence brought to her palace.

Shizuo looked a bit relieved to hear that as they were walked out to the gates. Once the great gate opened, they all could see that it had snowed hard the day before, covering the world pure white. The moon was full and bright, illuminating the mountain as if it were day.

“Please be careful on your journey.” Anri spoke as she said her farewells. Shizuo bowed in gratitude and before Izaya could even take one step onto the snow, the blond swooped and grabbed him into his embrace to carry him out.

“W-w-wha-what do you think you’re doing?!!!!!” Izaya screamed and flailed as Shizuo kept a firm hold of him.

“Exactly what you think I’m doing. Even if you heal that fast, there’s no way you’re absolutely better. I saw you shift weight to your other side when you thought no one was looking. Your left abdomen still hurts where you got pierced, right?” Shizuo shrugged as he nonchalantly spoke freely of Izaya’s embarrassment.

“I’m perfectly fine! You let me go this instant!”

Izaya’s protest fell deaf to the priest’s ears as he turned around and bowed more properly to the Queen all the while holding the flailing Earl, much to Anri’s astonishment.

“Shizuo!!! You let me down this instant, you protozoan!!!”

“No.” The hunter bounced the very perturbed vampire as if balancing a baby, much to Izaya’s humiliation. Then just as coolly, Shizuo walked down the stairs to the streets, as the Queen watched in awe, as she had never seen the Earl treated with so much disrespect at the same time, with such great care. Earl Orihara had a reputation of being maliciously cruel at court as he teased everyone with a sharp perception where it stung and this man had practically dismantled that high earned reputation with one single swoop as if he was handling an unruly child in need of a spanking.

She smiled a bit to herself as she watched the duo leave her premises, the Earl’s loud complaints still heard even as they disappeared over the next hill.

“Your Highness?” one of the elders who stood next to her asked in surprise as their Queen couldn’t help but giggle.  He hadn’t seen her laugh in all the years he had known her.

“No, it’s nothing.” She calmed herself by placing a hand over her lips, though a smile still lingered.

“Perhaps there’s still hope for the Earl after all,” she half said to herself and to no one in particular. They probably had a long way to go, but to witness the Earl in anything less than in control of himself and his environment was a treat beyond her wildest dreams. A flustered Earl Orihara… if she ever told this story to Mikado or Kida… they wouldn’t believe her at all.

Maybe she had overestimated Orihara Izaya. Perhaps he wasn’t as malicious as she had originally thought…

Though all too soon, the bitter memories of herself with Mika came back and once again she braced herself to remember that the Earl of Orihara was no one to be messed with.

Still… perhaps that young priest had something no one else had, to be able to handle such an insufferable and difficult Earl with such ease. The Queen of vampires kept her thoughts to herself as she turned back to the comforts of her palace, distancing herself from her painful past that the Earl had dug up from her heart.

**  
  
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“I said, let me down!” Izaya fumed angrily as they were farther and farther away. The deep snow came right under Shizuo’s knees and it looked none too easy to walk in but hell would freeze over first before Orihara Izaya would allow such humiliating display of being carried with a decorum equating that of a… …a sack of potato or something similar along that line!! What was worse was that the damage has been done already in front of Sonohara Anri!

“No,” Shizuo said stubbornly, holding the vampire tight as Izaya’s wings flapped under his fur coat. In fact the priest wrapped the coat around Izaya’s back even more firmly so he couldn’t fly away. “I’m not letting you walk with that kind of injury.”

“Do you even understand what kind of HUMILIATION that was in front of Sonoha-mmffphh!!” Izaya was screaming at the top of his lungs when something was placed on his mouth and blocked him from shouting any further.

Something warm and soft… and with a hint of…

Izaya’s eyes widened as Shizuo’s face moved away, the vampire staring into a set of very serious honeyed eyes.

“I don’t care about that. You’re hurt and I’m not letting you walk in this kind of weather. And that’s final.”

Izaya wasn’t paying much attention or listening to each of Shizuo’s words as he moved up his hand to touch his lips with the tips of his leather gloved fingers.

Did he just…?!

Izaya’s expression changed back as the shock wore off in few seconds, as he opened his mouth to shout, “Look, here! That still doesn’t mean--mmffh….! I… mmngh…! Shizu-!!!! I…. mmpff….!!”  
  


Each time Izaya opened his mouth to protest, Shizuo leaned forward to cover his mouth with his own, each kiss warming up the vampire to the point his face was flushed red. Shizuo’s lips were warm despite the cold, the puffs of breath melting away the edges of the frosty winter night’s bitter wind. The first one was just a bump of the lips but the second time around Shizuo started to part his mouth to effectively cover Izaya’s own and later the blond slightly sucked on the vampire’s protesting lower lip.  That froze Izaya more effectively than before as Shizuo’s mouth lingered over his. The last one almost made the vampire moan and shudder. Izaya finally pulled his hand free from between their chests to push away the priest’s deviously kissing lips, extremely flustered from such a lascivious exchange.

“S-STOP, YOU IDIOT!! What do you think you’re doing?!!!” Izaya stammered, his long ears flattening and his heart pounding madly against his chest. He could hear his own blood rush to his face and possibly down his groin through his own ears.

“Kissing you, of course,” Shizuo said calmly, which vexed the heavily aroused vampire even more.

“What the hell! I mean, yes you are but…!! A-aren’t you a priest?! Are priests allowed to engage in s-such indecent intercourse?!!!” Izaya fumed, more angry at himself for being flustered over just…a bunch of kisses. And that he couldn’t believe that they were actually effective! He was several hundred years old, dammit!!

“Indecent?? Priests aren’t allowed to marry but no one said kisses were bad. Father Tom used to kiss me on my forehead all the time as a kid. Saints share chaste kisses all the time in the Holy Book so what’s the difference?”

“THAT’S A LOT DIFFERENT, SHIZU-CHAN!!!” Izaya’s voice squeaked an octave higher than he intended at the last word to which the journeyman priest just chuckled.

“Besides! I’m a vampire! Do you even understand what kind of sin you’re technically ….!!” Izaya stopped himself before he continued further. Shizuo’s eyes clearly indicated that that sort of thing between vampires and humans didn’t matter to him, whether he was a holy man or not. That and… it didn’t look as if Shizuo was affected by the kiss. There was not a hint of any physical state of arousal. It was like looking into a face of an innocent child, uncorrupted from debauchery of the world.

Izaya’s face burned with shame in knowing that only he had been the one to assume that the kiss meant something intimate… and stimulating. He couldn’t believe he had even been…. possibly… so easily affected … at such an amateurish kiss!!

“Well, you suck at kissing!!!” was Izaya’s only lame complaint as he buried his face into Shizuo’s embrace.

“.... Really? How am I suppose to kiss, then?” Shizuo looked a bit surprised at being told he sucked at something as simple as bumping lips together. Was there supposed to be another way?

Clearly, Izaya bristled at such a question as he screamed into Shizuo’s coat in a muffled voice, “Shut up! I hate you!! Go die, Shizu-chan!”

The hunter chuckled as he carefully walked down the snowy mountain slopes, holding his vampire close to him to keep him warm like a precious bundle he wished to protect.

**  
  
  
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	12. Chapter 12

While walking down that cold, harsh mountain with a huffy and disgruntled vampire in his arms, Shizuo made a solemn promise to himself.

Never again would he allow Izaya to get hurt like that.

The image of Izaya being impaled to the grounds and bleeding out while he laboriously gasped for breath…had burned into the young priest's mind.

And it was one of his greatest guilts he had ever felt.

And next time, he wouldn't hesitate to protect him.

* * *

"Nnngh…Shizu-chan?" Izaya groaned as he woke up to the rustling noise. He blinked open to feel layers and layers of soft blanket over his head.

"Shizu-chan?" Izaya sat up from their bed and saw that Shizuo was getting dressed. It wasn't quite yet dawn as the sky was slowly turning dark blue to reddish orange as the sun started peeking out from the horizon.

"Ah, sorry, did I wake you up? I'll be back soon," Shizuo turned to gently pat Izaya on his head like a pet cat and the vampire hissed at that. They had come back to their church late last night and Shizuo wasn't able to make his report. The travel wasn't wearying for Izaya as the hunter didn't press to hurry but Izaya really didn't like how Shizuo kept smothering him with being protective. Izaya didn't even know how Shizuo had gotten extra blankets for their room, especially something this soft. Shizuo had always been somewhat of a minimalist, using a hard pillow and thin blankets before.

"Don't treat me like a pet," Izaya smacked the hand away. He knew Shizuo meant well but it felt so unnecessarily condescending, as if Izaya couldn't take care of himself. And that pissed him off.

"And are you trying to drown me in this? I don't need this many blankets!" Izaya found everything to be irritating, the way Shizuo's behavior seemed to have changed overnight, ever since they came down from the mountains at Anri's. Shizuo had made sure they slept during the day at the inn, so it was more comfortable. They had only travelled at night and no matter how much the vampire protested, Shizuo insisted on carrying him even after Izaya had reassured that his legs were fine now. Izaya was at his limits being fed up with Shizuo that now he wanted to lash out at anything and everything, even the comforts that he actually wanted.

"I thought you didn't like being cold," Shizuo smirked almost teasingly as if he were being patient with a spoiled child which only made Izaya more irritated.

"Or would you rather sleep naked?" Shizuo couldn't help but grin as Izaya bristled in anger. Slowly, Shizuo was learning how to deal with this dishonest vampire. Since Izaya wasn't the type to reveal his true emotions easily, Shizuo found out that teasing him a bit seemed to bring out Izaya's purest responses. That, and irritated Izaya was pretty adorable with his ears and wings conveying just as many emotions as his twitching eyebrows, kind of like a grumpy cat.

Before the Izaya could retort, Shizuo turned his back on him. "Stay inside, I'll be back soon. I'll ask Sister Vorona that you need your rest so you don't have to help her today with the laundry. I don't think your wounds are completely healed yet."

"What the hell Shizu-chan! I'll leave and help out if I want to! Don't tell me what to d-!" Izaya was screaming as his wings flapped behind him with frustration and his ears flattened back when he was silenced with a soft kiss on his lips. The touch was gentle as feathers from a nightingale.

Izaya's eyes widened and he froze in place as Shizuo's face slowly moved away with a grin. The vampire didn't even realize Shizuo's hands were cupping his cheek before they were gone. Hecould feel the ghostly caress of those fingertips as they left his face.

"If you really want to help her out, go ahead. Just don't overdo it."

And with that, Shizuo walked out, leaving the vampire frozen in his long over-sized shirt that was Shizuo's. It was as if time itself had frozen as Izaya's heart started to beat faster and faster in realization.

D-d-d-did THAT PRIEST JUST FUCKING KISS HIM ON THE LIPS AGAIN?!

The hunter KNEW that the kiss seemed to shut him up and was taking advantage of him! And Izaya hated that! He HATED that the priest seemed to have thought he figured him out and he HATED that Shizuo was acting as if Izaya was predictable and he HATED that that Izaya was indeed falling for all these petty little tricks! Despite all the wild fluttering of his heart, his cheeks flushed warm with anger. Surely this was anger Izaya was feeling, it couldn't be anything else!

And why the HELL did the kiss actually feel good?!

Izaya's thoughts were interrupted when there was a knock on the door. Izaya flared up as he marched towards the door.

"What now?!" Izaya screamed as he opened the door, ready to yell at the priest. "I haven't done anythi-..." the vampire froze as he realized it wasn't the blond hunter at the door. Instead Izaya was faced with the young blond nun who also stood in mild surprise with her hand in mid-knocking motion to the door.

"A-ah! V-Vorona! S-sorry, I thought you were…!" Izaya's face flushed as he had thought it was Shizuo.

"Laundry?" Vorona asked as she held up her basket to pick up the usual dirty laundry.

"Oh, right…! Uhhh!" Izaya quickly turned and dug around for their travel clothes from the backpack, throwing all sorts of items into the air. Then he shoved the crumpled clothes onto Vorona.

"I highly advise getting dressed, Orihara-san. You might catch a cold," Vorona commented as she calmly eyed Izaya's bare legs. He was only wearing Shizuo's long white undershirt like a dress after all.

"I…! I'm fine! I-I'm gonna get dressed now!" Izaya screamed back even more flustered while the woman who should be flustered remained composed. After he closed the door, Izaya sighed as he leaned against it. His heart still fluttered and he could feel that his cheeks were burning red.

He touched his lips with one finger, tracing the feel of Shizuo's kiss on him. He could still feel the lingering imprint of Shizuo's lips. And with how gentle Shizuo was treating him recently, it made him feel warm inside but his chest squeezed painfully tight with guilt. Izaya pouted as he sighed to himself.

"Stupid Shizu-chan…you shouldn't be kissing other people so lightly…"

Especially someone like him…an undeserving vampire who was responsible for his parents' deaths. It was only natural that the vampire wanted to distance himself from the priest even further as the blond continued to treat him kindly.

* * *

After an hour or so cooped inside Shizuo's room, Izaya decided to step outside. It wasn't because he could feel the walls close in again, nope!...or so Izaya told himself. He was just bored, that was all. So despite the possible danger of running into Shiki's men, Izaya got dressed and stepped outside. He would go visit Shinra, that should be safe enough.

The vampire decided against flying through the window to go to Shinra's, as it was safer and faster to fly but he was pretty sure that the church members would make a fuss if a vampire flew around their building in broad daylight. After carefully inspecting the hallways, Izaya stepped out to briskly walked toward Shinra's infirmary.

On the way, the vampire noticed Kasuka walking toward him down the hallway from the opposite direction.

'Oh shit…' Izaya thought to himself. He had been trying to avoid Shizuo's younger brother for months now but it would be too weird if he turned tail and ran the other way…

...but he did so anyway as Izaya broke into a cold sweat and turned around to avoid facing Kasuka.

"What a coincidence, Orihara-san. Where are you headed?" Brother Kasuka Heiwajima called out as he closed the gaps between them in a flash. How the hell that hunter could walk so fast, Izaya had no idea as Kasuka now stood side-by-side with him. The vampire sighed to himself. He was caught and he knew it.

"Ah, good morning, priest Heiwajima?" Izaya turned to laugh as naturally as possible. He wasn't sure what he was suppose to call Kasuka. Brother Heiwajima? Priest?

"To where? Erm…to Shinra's…" Izaya mumbled to himself. Kasuka leaned up close and nodded blankly, "What a coincidence, Orihara-san. I'm headed there too."

"...Really?" Izaya's face fell. Wait. Seriously?!

And so the younger Hunter Heiwajima and the vampire Orihara Izaya lined up next to each other as they walked down the hallway and crossed the chapel. Which was an incredibly rare sight. As they reached the main hall, there were murmurs around them, some death glares sent their way. If the nuns weren't so scared of the vampire, one would have mentioned how two handsome dark haired men were walking side by side, Kasuka in his hunter's obsidian trench coat and the vampire in his cape that hid his wings, both flaring behind them in the wind. They looked like a formidable handsome duo next to each other. But Izaya felt even more awkward to walk next to Kasuka, who didn't seem to mind the stares or the whispers.

"Don't mind them, Orihara-san," Kasuka softly spoke after awhile, just barely above being audible. If it weren't for Izaya's keen vampire ears, it would have been hard to pick up.

"Hahaha…I don't, don't worry. That's…not what I'm most worried about…" Izaya laughed it off with a shake of his head. And that was the extent of their conversation down the long journey to Shinra's.

Finally they had reached just before Shinra's door and Izaya let out a sigh of relief. But before Izaya could open it, Kasuka's hand was on the door handle. The vampire waited to see if Kasuka was going to open the door but he didn't. Instead Kasuka was barring the way to stare straight into the vampire's crimson eyes. Izaya flinched.

"Wh-what…is it?" Izaya asked nervously as he feigned a smile. He didn't really want to deal with Kasuka at all if possible. After all…if he was responsible for Shizuo's parents' death, then that also meant it extended to Kasuka's as well. Dealing with Shizuo was already a handful.

"I wanted to thank you." The young, somber hunter stared deeply into the vampire's eyes. Izaya felt nervous as if Kasuka was looking into his soul.

"Thank me?" Izaya cocked his head in confusion. He felt a cold bead of sweat run down his temple as he slightly hesitated to ask what the hunter meant.

"That night," Kasuka softly spoke with his eyes unwavering.

"...you were awake," Izaya's eyes widen and he gasped inwardly as it dawned on him. He had thought that Kasuka was knocked unconscious but…if he was indeed awake, then…

Kasuka simply nodded in confirmation. Izaya sighed as he scratched his head in frustration.

"Well that puts me in a difficult spot… Mind if you don't tell Shizu-chan?"

"?" Now it was Kasuka's turn to slightly tilt his head in a gesture of mild puzzlement despite his deadpan eyes. Izaya shook his head and chuckled softly. It was as if he could clearly see a question mark floating above that expressionless face.

"It would only confuse him further," Izaya gave Kasuka his best smile hoping that the young hunter would agree without asking further questions. Right now the tide was turning in Izaya's favor despite everything that had happened and the vampire didn't want to jeopardize it by introducing an unknown factor. With Shizuo, it was hard to predict the outcome if he found out the truth. And if Shizuo went back to dwelling on his parents' deaths, Izaya really didn't want to be caught in the middle of it and being blamed for it all over again just as when his relationship with Shizuo was getting better.

"I can't promise that, Orihara-san," Kasuka spoke honestly as he turned the knob to open the door for Izaya.

"So cruel…" Izaya chuckled softly as he stepped forward.

"Well then," Kasuka gave him a short nod and left. Izaya blinked as he realized that Kasuka actually didn't need to go to Shinra's. He must have just wanted to escort Izaya so he was unmolested on his way.

'How cute. So he does have that kind of a sweet side, despite that deadpan face. Ruri's pretty lucky,' Izaya smiled warmly as he went inside. Maybe there was some hope after all if Kasuka was…

"Izaya-kun?"

Izaya's thoughts snapped back to his present situation as the good doctor greeted him. Shinra was holding his weird mug and was sipping from it, standing next to a table of haphazardly placed vials and tubes.

"Shinraaaaa~~!" the vampire threw himself to his friend's arms, "I missed you! That damn protozoan had my body practically ripped apart this trip! Barely escaped alive you know!" And he was about to whine and complain in extensive exaggeration just like the last trip which had him burned to a crisp but Shinra just laughed.

"Yeah I know. Shizuo came by early and told me about it actually."

"Wait, he did? Already? Tch…" Izaya growled, now that his fun had been spoiled. He couldn't exaggerate the facts anymore. Wait, so Shizuo had already spoken to Vorona and to Shinra about him on his way to file his report? It was almost as if Shizuo was taking one step ahead of Izaya. He was growing way too protective...

"Actually, I'm glad you came by. It's not quite solid yet but I want to test this out," Shinra walked over to the test tube cylinders he had on the table. Curious, Izaya walked over.

"What is it?"

"Blood pills. I'm sure you've heard of them right?" Shinra smiled as he shook one of the cylinders. "I should have thought about them earlier. Shizuo asked if there's any way that I can make something so whenever you're hurt, you can immediately drink his blood without Shizuo slicing his hand right then and there so we're trying to create a few using his blood." Shinra smiled as he held up a rather large beaker of blood which was probably from Shizuo's.

"Don't people faint if they lose that much blood...?" Izaya looked a bit surprised at the beaker.

"Ah, don't worry. I made sure I wouldn't drain everything from him. But I needed some to run some tests. Here, pop one in." Shinra held up a small, gelatin-like pill. It was soft to the touch as Izaya held it skeptically and then popped it in his mouth.

Izaya's eyes widened. There wasn't much taste as he swallowed but he could feel the effects spreading inside him slowly.

"...how is it? Is it working?" Shinra touched his glasses as it reflected the sunlight.

"...I think so. There's really no taste but it is similar to drinking Shizu-chan's blood…but I think it's not as effective as the fresh blood. But decent." Izaya tried to explain what he was feeling inside though it was difficult. It was sort of similar to drinking blood from the packets or those preserved blood meals that the chefs made back at home.

"Nice! If this works then we can possibly have a few made for Ruri too!" Shinra looked a bit excited as he shook the beaker. "The main problem is keeping the blood fresh but more solid. Kind of harder than I expected but…this could be revolutionary!" Shinra laughed a bit to himself, "It's kind of funny. When I explained that there could be a way for vampire's to take pills instead, Shizuo was the most excited about it. He thought maybe vampires could live off of pills and never drink human's blood before he wondered if there could be a world peace. Haha… Think of that, wouldn't that be interesting?"

"Haha…ha…I guess…" Izaya laughed weakly. He couldn't actually tell Shinra that the vampires had been making things like blood pills and packets or even making fine blood wine from human blood for hundreds of years already. It was just that fresh blood directly from humans was the most decadent in taste, like eating raw sashimi for humans. Though vampires could live off of processed blood, it was out of choice where many preferred fresh human blood.

Well, the nobles usually had his peasants chop up a human in those days like livestock so they didn't have to dirty their hands, but that was another story. Some nobles liked to feed on the human, so it just depended on each vampire's taste.

"But if I needed some to be healed right away, these would be useful for the missions, Shinra," Izaya admitted as he looked over Shinra's work.

"Yeah, I don't think I can have them preserved long enough. The blood would expire after few days but it's better than nothing I think." Shinra frowned as he seem to concentrate on his test tubes.

"Well, I'll leave you to your work then, I'll see you later," Izaya waved him off.

"Don't want to tell me your latest adventure with Shizuo-kun?" Shinra smirked knowingly. Izaya laughed it off. "Perhaps another time."

After Izaya left Shinra's, he wondered what to do. It was really boring in the church in general, despite the danger with Shiki and Horada and their gangs probably biding their time to eliminate him.

"I wish they'd hurry up and attack me and get it over with so I can retaliate. The waiting is killing me," Izaya grumbled. Knowing nowhere else to go, Izaya turned to head back to Shizuo's room. Maybe Shizuo was back...

"Ah, Izaya!"

Upon hearing Shizuo's voice rather than his name being called, Izaya turned around to see the hunter run towards him with a big smile.

"Shizu-chan?" Izaya was half worried that he was going to be scolded for leaving the room but it didn't seem like it. Shizuo ran over and gave him a big hug, laughing happily.

"I got it! I got the consent order!" Shizuo laughed half in disbelief while Izaya remained perplexed in his arms. Izaya felt his own heartbeat jump erratically at the sudden embrace and it shamed him to think that Shizuo could elicit such a response from him.

"Got what consent?" Izaya patted Shizuo's arm, trying to pry himself out of the hug. Shizuo's hold wasn't hurting him physically but it made him feel very uncomfortable…he didn't deserve it after all.

"Consent to build a small lodge just outside the church but in the grounds where the forest starts," Shizuo babbled happily as he loosened his grip. "I said that it would make the church members and the townsmen feel safer if you weren't always within the church. And that one bed for two men just won't do. Even Ruri has her own room…" Shizuo trailed off as he realized what he said could be taken wrong, as if Izaya was a burden.

"Not that I'm saying it's bad for you to walk around the church." Shizuo quickly added, "I think it's fine but…there are people here who want to harm you. And I admit I did a lot of fast talking and…"

"Why are you doing this?" Izaya asked, cutting Shizuo off with a perplexed look. Shizuo never was all that concerned before and he didn't seem to care much when Izaya was wounded with silver bullets after Vorona had shot him. It seemed Shizuo had always cared more about following orders and that Izaya stayed out of trouble. Izaya actually preferred that…all business and nothing personal. It was too weird to see Shizuo go out of his way to accommodate a 'vampire'. He, a vampire, was an enemy to all humankind… Wasn't he?

"What do you mean why?" Shizuo looked a bit confused. "Do you want to stay in my room with just one bed?"

"Well…no…" Izaya sighed. That wasn't what he meant but Shizuo seemed to have taken it literally.

"Anyway, I think I can make it but I need to research some designs. Let's check out some books at the library, so come on." Shizuo grabbed Izaya's hand and led him. Izaya stared at Shizuo's hand holding his and flushed a bit. This guy was way too touchy-feely!

"W-wait, but…I thought you went to grab a new mission?" Izaya voiced his puzzlement. Wasn't that what Shizuo wanted? New missions so Izaya could be out of their hair and not bother the church members…Izaya had no idea that Shizuo had been taking missions quickly to protect him from his enemies after all this time.

"Uh, no. I don't plan to go on any missions for few weeks, maybe a whole month," Shizuo looked a bit surprised at Izaya's words. "To be honest, I think I've been a horrible partner. I don't know what magic spells you know so I can support you or cooperate with you. So let's also start formulating some battle strategy. You know like hand signals or something…so you don't get h-..." Shizuo paused in his mid sentence. He almost blurted out, 'so you don't get hurt next time,' but his flushed face said everything to Izaya.

The vampire stared mostly in shock. Support? Since when did Shizuo want to be his support? Wasn't it Izaya's job to be his 'shield'?

"A-anyway, yeah. Let's go study at the library," Shizuo turned to face forward with his face turning red, though his grip on Izaya's hand didn't loosen.

Izaya couldn't help but smile to himself even as his cheeks warmed up.

Yeah, he liked the direction their relationship was going right now even though Shizuo was being a bit too overprotective. He didn't want this moment to be ruined. Not just yet. Let the sweet dream last just a bit longer before the inevitable reality came.

So Izaya didn't say anything as he followed Shizuo to the library.

* * *

They spent the rest of the month building their log cabin during the day and spending the evening studying in the library. Shizuo was shocked when he realized there were very little offensive spells Izaya knew. Shizuo also had no idea that most noble vampires didn't really know how to fight since he had always run across vampires who usually fought back. Of course, the ones Shizuo fought were all considered peasants according to Izaya. The ones of nobility, unless they were in the military, were normally surrounded by bodyguards and had no need to learn offensive spells, nor would they have any need to go out to salvage for human blood. So most spells Izaya knew were the simple ones, such as gathering up currents of wind or fireballs to throw. What Izaya had that other vampires did not was the capacity to learn incredibly difficult spells that required a lot of magic and mental power. Due to his bloodline, he was able to cast extremely difficult spells that required much more magical strength, if he took the time to learn them.

So Izaya spent most of his days and nights in the library. Sometimes he brought the books to their room to learn new spells or theories of magic while Shizuo was out building their log cabin during the daytime. The hunter was able to cut through the wooded area with an axe, smooth them out and drag them without any help at the location.

Much to their surprise, when the church members realized that Shizuo was planning to build a small log cabin just along the edge of the forest, several of them helped in their spare time. Father Tom and Kasuka of course were willing to do some of the harder labor while many of the sisters that washed the laundry with Izaya and of course, Sister Vorona too came to help with the smaller chores. Even the cook that shooed Izaya and the children out of his kitchen came over with meals. And the orphans too came by, though they weren't able to help much. Despite Izaya's appearance on the surface, it looked like he had made many friends within the church.

At dusk, no matter how tired Shizuo was, he would wash off his sweat and come to the library to see what Izaya had learned and how they could incorporate the new spells for some coordinated attacks or strategies. Though they didn't get to actually practice in battlefield, they did sometimes go to the practice area to cast some spells, away from the church.

Shizuo could tell that Izaya was getting stronger and more confident and the hunter was ashamed to have thought that all vampires just knew how to fight naturally. Izaya actually had almost no experience in the battlefield, Shizuo learned. Though Izaya didn't tell him in detail, it seemed that the vampire was more in a position of a general or a captain, someone who usually made strategies and gave orders, not a front-line man like Shizuo.

The blond was amazed when Izaya explained what kind of strategies would work best depending on their enemy and their battle locations all the way to what kind of weather would affect what situations. The blond had no idea that geology of the city or the town or even the forest or lake could affect their battle plans so much. Shizuo had taken classes in the hunting academy although he usually sucked at strategy making and found them boring back then. He had always thought that since he was strong enough, he could just plow through and ignore all the problems. But now he realized how wrong that was and understood how important it was to work with his partner. So he listened carefully and tried to follow along Izaya's quick mind. And what a quick mind this vampire had. Mainly what Shizuo understood was that most of the time it'd be best if he let Izaya do what he needed to do and just be the vampire's support. Izaya was clearly much smarter than he was, that wasn't ever questioned.

With that, Shizuo left Izaya to himself, giving the vampire have the free reign in learning whatever spells he believed would be best for them while the hunter focused on creating their nest.

Izaya did love being in the spacious library a lot more than being stuck inside tiny Shizuo's room. The library was three floors high and at least ten normal dormitory rooms wide with elegant bookshelves and long ladders that climbed up. It also included that stained glass window in the center that flooded the room with colorful light. There was as well a large fireplace where Izaya could grab a chair by the table and cozy up with a book or two. The main thing Izaya loved was the golden silence.

At times, the church members would come to study the books too (though the library was largely empty as most monks were lazy) and obviously looked down upon the vampire learning offensive magical spells. When the situation arose, Izaya grabbed a few books he wanted and either headed to Shinra's or to Shizuo's for privacy.

It was one of those days where Izaya was enjoying the entire library to himself. When he heard the door open, the vampire sighed as he closed his book after putting a small marker in between the pages he was reading. He then piled up the books to take with him when he heard a voice call out to him.

"Oh? I believe you're the famous Orihara Izaya-san, I presume?"

Izaya turned to see who was calling him, as the church members largely avoided his existence. It was a priest dressed in red with a monocle over his eye. On the other eye, there was a large scar that slashed through his eyelid vertically across. Clearly an old wound that had healed over time, save for that scar that remained as a reminder of his past fierce battle.

"Heh…and I guess you're the Red Priest Akabayashi?" Izaya turned to smile and wave at him instead of bowing properly. He knew it always seemed to irritate all the priests here, exactly why he did it more than anything. Besides, age-wise, 'he' was the oldest here. "What brings you here? Isn't it time for you to go to your prayer room or something?" Izaya greeted the priest with a cheeky smirk.

"Ah, this old man has gone and said his prayers this morning before you were awake, child." Akabayashi smiled at him, though his scar made it creepier than its intended gentleness as he walked over with his decorative cane in hand. Although he walked with a cane and one eye was slashed blind, the Red Priest had no significant limp.

"Thought you old priests stayed there all day and night," Izaya shrugged as he jabbed at the priest while grabbing his books. Just then, swiftly before Izaya could lift his books, a cane slammed onto them, forcing the vampire to still in his position. Izaya blinked slowly, as he didn't see the cane coming at all.

Akabayashi looked down at the books while Izaya could feel a shudder run down his spine as the Red Priest's piercing eyes glanced over the titles.

"Oh? What interesting reading material you have there, young master. Why, I believe this is a book concerning blood magic."

Izaya swallowed hard as if he was caught red-handed. This man wasn't to be taken lightly, Izaya could feel it deeply. Something about him made Izaya shiver hard as if he was facing Shiki the White Priest. Except this man…felt strangely familiar, despite never having met before.

"Ah, well…I just was curious…since I'm under the influence of one and all and…" Izaya smiled as innocently as possible.

"Well, it is not a book on lists of blood magic spells for you to cast but just theories of how to create new magic…a rather difficult reading material for beginning magicians," Akabayashi's lips smiled though it never reached his eyes. "Perhaps you're interested in learning how to create new blood spells? Such as…how to untangle one's self from its curse…?"

"Aaaah!" Izaya screamed suddenly, throwing off the Red Priest who took a step back. The vampire stared at Akabayashi and gulped, laughing nervously.

"Oh my, you're totally right! There's no way a beginner like me can read this, ahahahaha!" Izaya quickly placed the book back on the table.

"Beginners like me should stick with elemental magics right? Yeah, hahaha! Thanks again Sir, I will come to you for some reading material advice!" Izaya hurriedly picked up the rest of the books and bowed before rushing to the door.

"Anytime, young master," Akabayashi smiled as he waved at the vampire hastily flapping away. "You know where to find me if you need any advice."

Izaya's heart was pounding madly as he slammed the door behind him and ran inside Shizuo's room. He practically threw himself under the covers to try to calm down. Normally he wouldn't be so scared of anyone but something in his mind screamed at him that the man in particular exuded an aura of danger.

"Th-that was close…" Izaya thought as he tried to sigh and regain some of his composure. He had partly acted like an imbecile in front of the priest, hoping that he'd be underestimated, except it was also true that Izaya did indeed slightly panic back there. Just a bit…

The feeling he got from Akabayashi was definitely close to what he felt when facing Mikado. Only that Mikado, of course, was probably five times scarier. Or so Izaya thought. Now that he was safely in Shizuo's room, he carefully contemplated, trying to analyze what exactly about Akabayashi had triggered such an alarm deep inside him.

"It's alright, I wasn't caught. It's…alright," Izaya sighed deeply and told himself over and over as he trembled under the blankets. With relief, the tense stress he had felt earlier melted away slowly. Then he looked down at the books that he had managed to take with him. There were a few other books on the theories of blood magic and several books on other forbidden spells he had managed to grab. Of course how to cast the forbidden spells wasn't written in the books but they listed what kind of spells they were and what effects they could cast so the hunters could defend themselves against them…or watch for them long enough to run away. It was enough for Izaya to imagine what kind of spells they were. All one needed was enough magical strength, a bit of creativity, and a lot of luck to create spells from scratch after all.

"I can do this…" Izaya closed his eyes and thought to himself. He didn't want to be forever chained to Shizuo, no, he wanted to be free. There should be a way to reverse the curse cast on him. And if not, Izaya would find a way to create a new spell.

Only that Red Priest saw right through his plans.

For now, as long as Shizuo didn't find out…and if Izaya hurried, there could be a chance. Surely the Red Priest would keep an eye out for him now but Izaya didn't think he would tell Shizuo anything. Rather than Shizuo…Izaya was more worried that the priest was already in conspiracy with Shiki…and what they could plan together instead.

"I'll be fine…I'll be fine…" Izaya repeated to himself again and again as he leaned his head against the wall. Despite wanting to be free from this curse, he wished Shizuo would come home already and hold him. As much as Izaya despised depending on Shizuo, times like this the blond didn't come back fast enough for Izaya's anxious heart.


	13. Chapter 13

The next day was a warm, sunny day for November - just the kind of day that made it feel as though the last rays of sunshine were warming the Earth before the cold and cruel month of December could descend upon them. Shizuo had come with good news the night before, claiming that he had finished most of the cabin work and that they could finally start moving stuff in. Izaya just shrugged it off though, his lack of interest apparent. Instead, he merely slipped back into bed, curling up to sleep there without a word. But what made the whole situation extremely unusual was that Izaya did not ask for blood. Usually when Shizuo came home, the vampire was vocal and whined about the hunter coming home too late,but last night he had simply rolled over in bed and promptly went to sleep without asking for a drop.  

Instead of asking about it though, Shizuo decided to wait it out one more day. Part of him wanted to see if it just a bad mood that prompted Izaya’s behavior that day or if it was something serious enough for Izaya’s strange behavior to carry over the next morning. By the time the sun rose, Izaya was back to his chirpy self which made Shizuo think it was okay to just let it go., However, despite feeling reassured the hunter decided it was still best to continue watching over Izaya, just in case it was all a lie.

“So, what d’ya think?” Shizuo asked as he opened the door to their new one-room home. At the invitation Izaya peeked in and almost instantly recognized it with a sinking feeling of nostalgia. From where they stood the cabin opened up into a section that was obviously meant to serve as the  living room. The room was sparsely decorated with  only an unlit fireplace and a table with chairs located near it. A foot to the right of the chairs there was a large section of the room curtained off.  Although Shizuo didn’t say it, Izaya assumed that that area was obviously meant to be the bedroom. There was also one small doorway near the curtained area, Izaya assuming that there was a small bathroom located on the other side of it.

Despite the fact it had something of an open space concept, the layout was exactly like the house Shizuo grew up in. The same house that Izaya had visited and consequently destroyed…on the very same night that the vampire had been captured by the church.

“...Spacious.” Izaya murmured, for the moment deciding not to mention the obvious similarities between the two homes as he continued to look in. Shizuo appeared excited, despite Izaya’s lackluster reply,as he began to carry in the rest of the furniture, forcing Izaya to move into the room front of him. “Yeah, there’s a lot more room now.”

Today was moving in day and despite their luck, a lot of people came to help them out. The nuns were cleaning and sweeping the place, the women chatting happily as they worked around each other.  And even though Shizuo himself did not have much in his dorm everyone chipped in to make the place more homey. Vorona had brought a vase for the flowers the the orphan girls had picked for Shizuo, and although there weren’t alot of flowers growing this time of year, the girls had stubbornly done their best to fill it. Some of the nuns had brought their rugs in for the living room and  even some utensils for the bathroom, saying that they were just extras collecting dust and didn’t mind donating the items. The cooks, Dennis and Simon, whom Izaya had befriended while stealing their food for the orphans, had brought some extra utensils as well and even some priests who got along with Shizuo brought over all sorts of items, from extra wooden crosses to hang on the wall all the way down to wine bottles they had filched from the warehouse to celebrate their moving in later. Overall, it was a busy day and once they had finished moving in, Izaya immediately flopped onto his bed in relief.

Shizuo, however, wasn’t finished. After everyone had finally left and Shizuo saw them out, he came back to Izaya and sighed helplessly at his lazy roommate.

Then, to Izaya’s surprise, Shizuo went over to his own bed, which was spaced few feet away from Izaya’s. He quickly pushed it hard so that their beds were now connected together, making it into one larger bed rather than two seperate ones.

“Sh-Shizu-chan?”

“Much better,” Shizuo spoke more to himself as he nodded at the beds in approval.

“What’s that for?” Frowning at the sudden interruption to his relaxing moment,  Izaya sat up onto his elbows and stared at Shizuo in dismay..

“Don’t you get cold at night? I figured it’s better if we still slept together with winter coming.” Shizuo looked up at Izaya in surprise when the vampire questioned him over something that Shizuo had thought would be obvious.. “I just…didn’t think it was a good idea to push the beds together until they were gone…is all.” Shizuo’s ears turned red as he said that, but before Izaya could mention it the blond was quickly walking away to the bathroom to wash his face and get ready for bed after the long, hard day.

“...” Izaya wasn’t sure what was happening as he stared at Shizuo’s retreating back before slowly looking down at the now double bed.

‘ _Shizu-chan really is too considerate_ ,’ Izaya thought as his cheeks warmed up.

While Izaya remained shocked at the consideration he was being shown, the young blond hunter hurried to finish washing his face as he got ready for bed in their new bathroom. Shizuo felt giddy inside. He had finally done it. He had finished constructing their own place, and had thus finished creating somewhere safer for Izaya to live. He knew that the church grounds could never be totally safe for a vampire, but he hoped that being away from the main church would help Izaya stop feeling as if he was being chained down as much.

It would also lessen the circumstances where Izaya could run into his former abusers.

Shizuo had no idea who had tortured Izaya in the past, but - nonetheless- it was a fact that those people were still around. Izaya was still living in the same church and walking amongst the same people who had abused him and despite the vampire’s usual sunny disposition Shizuo knew it must be hard to do.

Hard, and incredibly painful.

Even though Shizuo had to live with bastards like Horada who had bullied him and had given him endless pains in the ass …to be tortured and locked up in chains…for years…was a different matter entirely.

Shizuo could still see the bleeding vampire on the floor,long nails having been impaled into his eyes, mouth and limbs at obscure angles. That image had burned into his mind strangely. It was even more unusual that it bothered him to such a degree since he was a hunter. He hunted vampires…but for him it was always a quick death, a blow to the chest or a head being cut off at worst.

Seeing a vampire in such a tortured state shouldn’t affect him so much, but it did. It didn’t make sense why however he knew he didn’t want to ever see that again. Grabbing his towel, Shizuo wiped slowly at his face before staring into the mirror with a saddened expression.

This place had no stone walls.

It was spacious.

It was as far away as Shizuo could manage from Izaya’s torturers.  

And here, Shizuo could keep the vampire a lot warmer and, hopefully, safer.

Hopefully.

He knew it wasn’t much, but he was really doing his best with what little he was given…!

Shizuo sighed.

To be honest, who was he even kidding? Of course it wasn’t enough. It could never be enough to make up for what Izaya had been through. Besides, even that there was another, more personal, problem at hand.

…the blond flushed as he remembered Izaya’s sleeping face every night.

He understood that the vampire wasn’t purposefully charming him and he believed Izaya when he had said as much but…sometimes Shizuo couldn’t help but wonder what else it could be that made his heart flutter like this. At his worst, in the morning he would wake up with one hell of a painful erection . Sure Shizuo idealistically spoke up about keeping Izaya warm every night and did _really_ want to make sure he was warm. But this was turning into quite a trial for the young journeyman priest. The real temptation he faced every night was to hold Izaya and resist  doing anything. Another was during those times when Izaya fed; when that small mouth parted to suck on his fingers and when Shizuo looked down to see Izaya moan in pleasure…

…A sinful thought was just as sinful as a sin acted upon..

But despite knowing better, the real issue the journeyman priest faced was what he was supposed to do or how he was supposed to deal with this frustration he felt inside each time his body warmed up with arousal. Considering he was sheltered and inexperienced, he was clueless in the ways of sexual intercourse or what entailed masturbation so Shizuo had no idea how to release his inner lust.

The only thing he could do was those ‘innocent’ kisses.

Shizuo knew that kissing on the lips wasn’t normal between non-lovers, but he couldn’t help wanting it. When Izaya’s eyes sparkled, his moist mouth parting, it was as if those lips were begging to be kissed, pleading be touched.

And Shizuo could feel something burning deep inside his heart, reaching depths of longing he couldn’t quite understand whenever he was with Izaya.

Besides, those kisses were a double-edged sword…it seems to have an amazing effect on Izaya as well. Shizuo smirked with the memories of Izaya’s flustered face with every kiss meant to be ‘innocent’, unknowingly inviting more than an earnest blush. The flea blushed like an untainted village maiden with each kiss, freezing the vampire into a stuttering mess.  It was a perfect ‘excuse’ whenever Shizuo needed to reel him in without Izaya assuming that it was an order in a master and servant relationship, which he needed to avoid at all costs.

With hesitation, Shizuo steeled his resolve for battle against his own inner desires, tempting more than to flirt beyond the boundaries between a priest and his vampire, as he finished washing up. Every night was a test of strength and willpower, slipping up with the curve of Izaya’s lips down an icy slope. Exhaling a troubled sigh, Shizuo forced his feet to move ahead of each other, the intent of looking for his pajamas currently on his mind when he was suddenly interrupted.

*DONG DONG DONG*

The church bell rang in a furious frenzy, echoing into the walls of the cabin and rattling through the floors. Exchanging a look of startled confusion, Shizuo and Izaya both recognized the sound from the church’s alarm for vampire invasions. The last time the church bell rang in alarm had involved Izaya’s unexpected escape from his cell in the basement.

…And Izaya was standing with Shizuo, clearly unable of pulling off an attack and lacking the reasoning to suddenly turn on the church.

“Wait, right here, I’m going out.” Shizuo called to him, hurriedly pulling on his armor plates over his clothing, grateful now that he had not changed into his night clothes as the bell continued to toll loudly. With his back still turned to Izaya, he gave a clear warning to the anxious vampire. “If this really is a vampire attack, you need to stay inside.”

“What the hell, Shizu-chan?! I thought I was your partner! Of course I’m going out!” Izaya fumed with soured determination, shooting up from his bed in defiance.

“No, Izaya. You’re staying right here. I don’t want them to mistakenly think that the vampire attacking the church is YOU, so stay here! I’m going to see what’s going on out there,” Shizuo reprimanded him firmly, his cloak swinging around his back amidst Izaya’s protests. He didn’t have time to argue why he didn’t want Izaya to be confused for an attacker, much less get himself hurt in defending the church against one of his own.

“But Shizu-chan! This could be an opportunity to see the results of what we’ve learned and practiced! And show them that I’m on your side! So why the hell are you ordering me ar- nnnmmff!!!”

Izaya gave a full body shiver as Shizuo grabbed his face with a strong hold, kissing him with the same strength. This time was far different than any others, nothing like any innocent pecks or silencing Izaya when the moment was right. This kiss they shared was almost suffocating, Shizuo’s lips clasping his as he tugged at Izaya’s lower lip to bring him closer, sucking it between his teeth. The vampire was stunned silent as the hint of a wet, velvety tongue licked his rough lips as if tasting the increasing speed of his pulse. His knees were weak, barely keeping his weight as they wobbled and trembled, his mind suddenly blank as his body betrayed him. He could easily melt into the tenderness that clung to his lips, nearly desperate with the intensity that kept Shizuo glued to him. His pulse roared in his ears, the sound of waves crashing against the shore in the hot throb of the tides swelling to flood his brain with his heightened senses attuned to every single detail of this kiss. Cupping the back of his head was Shizuo’s hand, gently holding him close as his lips smoothed over Izaya’s as if to shush him, his heartbeat betraying the notion of keeping calm as it thudded loudly through the hand capturing Izaya’s wrist. Fingers gently prodded at Izaya’s, quietly asking to cup and hold them in his own in an unspoken desire that felt hotter on his breath with the careful massage of his thumb over the back of Izaya’s much colder hand. Any thought of breathing had not occurred to him, not until he felt the steadily growing need for oxygen slide against Shizuo’s tongue curiously tasting his.

After Shizuo pulled away, a thin silver string of saliva clung to his lower lip, the same catching on the corner of Izaya’s mouth as their heated breaths intermingled. Time froze before them, captured in the softness of the ginger pants ignored as their eyes connected. Their breath mingled with each other’s as their eyes locked, searching into each others souls for what felt like forever. The intimate moment between them lasted until the harsh bellow of the church bell interrupted them with a loud series of clangs, forcing them to face the present danger potentially lurking outside.

“Ah, Shizu…” Izaya sighed in a failed attempt to catch his breath, spellbound with the warmth of Shizuo’s eyes staring past the crimson of his, only for Shizuo’s large hands cupping his cheeks to softly caress him.

“Stay,” Shizuo’s voice bore heat against Izaya’s chilled skin, the flesh prickling with a stifled shudder. “I’m not ordering you, but I’d worry if I knew you were out there…when all the hunters are likely to shoot down any vampire they see on sight. They won’t care whose side you are on. They’ll shoot first. So please, just this once...listen to me.”

A chaste peck to his forehead left Izaya rooted to the spot, the breath stolen from his lungs and unable to face the tingling burn in his cheeks, let alone speak, before Shizuo equipped himself with his golden cross and was gone.

The moment the door had slammed shut in haste behind the hunter, Izaya’s legs collapsed from beneath him, bringing him crashing from wispy clouds hazing over his mind and to the full force of reality at the floor. He dared not to speak, preoccupied as his hand curiously rose to brush against the lingering trace of Shizuo on his lips, his fingers trembling lightly.

The church bell continued to angrily give its clarion call, assembling the hunters for a battle ensured to be bathed in blood and the threat of war soaking the edges of their weapons. Izaya’s heart clenched tightly in anticipation, nervous anxiety rushing underneath his pale skin as the alarm’s sound dug itself into his flesh with the precision of a serrated knife, locking itself in place with its teeth. This ringing of the bell was far different from daytime combined with the disorder of this chaos, expecting minor casualties as the sound continued to rattle in Izaya’s bones.

Worst of all, Izaya had been left alone in this empty and remote cabin.

“...Stupid Shizu-chan…” Izaya whispered in a murmur, his ribcage tucking itself into the shuddering beat of his heart as he felt the urge to curl in on himself.

“...I’m safest when I’m next to you.”

  


 

* * *

 

 

 

The threat of winter approaching turned the sky into an ugly mix of purple and black, the overhanging moon slowly becoming the creeping lantern to the church grounds.The tree leaves rustled in the wind restlessly near the cabin residing along the edge of the forest where Izaya’s long ears twitched uneasily as he listened to the sounds of the night invading the quiet in an ominous tune.

“You’re in your positions, right?” A harsh voice interrupted the scratch of stubborn trees wavering in the bitter chill of wind brushing through the grounds.

Another voice, growling against the low hum of wind spoke up. “Don’t worry, we’ll fuck up that vampire before that beast Shizuo ever gets back.”

“Shh…! He’ll hear you.”

“Then don’t talk to me and do your job!”

Izaya sighed, his anxiety eased momentarily as he observed the apparent stupidity lingering from the hunters and their blatant disregard for the fact he could easily hear them from a mile away. Humans never learned.

However, by the time the hunters rushed through the cabin through the door with a show of force, it was unexpectedly empty.

“Shit, where did he go?!” Horada cussed as he pushed away his deep cowl to get a better look, squinting as he desperately searched the room, his anger rising when he and his men could not find the vampire anywhere.

“Search the area! He couldn’t have gone too far!” there was panic in Horada’s voice, laced in the venom of stinging rage boiling in his blood. “If we don’t kill him tonight, Father Shiki will have our heads!”

‘Well, isn’t that too bad…’ Izaya remarked to himself with a self-confident smirk, watching curiously from his place tucked inside the chimney. Luckily the place was new and the chimney was unused, making it easier for the vampire to crawl up without getting soot all over himself or his skin, something that would take ages and scrubbing his skin off to get clean from. Now he sat cross-legged on top, listening as the men’s voices echoed through the chimney. He couldn’t help but laugh in delight as the humans dove through from the windows and doors, the only exits that they had blindly thought the vampire would take.

“Goddammit!” The howl of anger was music to Izaya’s ears as it came from Horada, mildly arching an eyebrow as the holy man cursed Izaya’s name. How in all seven hells did that man became a monk, the vampire had no idea. Connections, probably, for being Shiki’s handpicked lackey.

“I was going to fuck that vampire bloody good! I miss fucking his ass.” Horada seethed in anger with a hiss, the shoulders of his men tensing in preparing for another explosive outburst from their superior. Izaya listened with feigned interest, one hand propping his chin. ‘Oh I bet you do…fucking bastard,’ Izaya gritted his teeth in memory. All in the name of ‘experiments’, how the humans had tied him up and…

“Heh…do we really have to kill him?” One of the blond hunters smirked as touched the sharp end of his knife to test the edge. Horada and the hunter stood watch by the door as the others turned over the furniture to see if Izaya was hiding under them, unknowingly contributing to the overall ridiculousness and general amusement of the vampire watching them closely. “I really liked fucking his ass back then. Of course I’m not into men or anything but I could always pretend he was girl.” The sadistic hunter smiled with a bone-chilling expression, tinting his eyes with blood lust.“I loved how he tried not to cry. Granted we ripped his eyes out so he probably couldn’t. That and…we cut his throat, I suppose.”

“It’s Shiki’s orders, of course we have to kill him! But first, I wanted one more round with his sweet ass,” Horada spit on the doorstep that the nuns had kindly swept and wiped just this morning. Izaya frowned at that, disgusted by the lack of any human qualities possessed by such a disgusting man.

“I’d rather fuck that creepy emotionless whore Ruri-chan…or Vorona. I want to see if they’d squirm or scream if I shove a knife through them. Since I couldn’t, I enjoyed making do with that fucking vampire. Ah, the good ol’ days huh?” the other potentially dangerous hunter flashed a self-satisfied sneer as he gazed into the distance, recalling his fantasy.

Interestingly enough, that was how Izaya had known about Vorona’s parents being killed by vampires due to the men gossiping between themselves in the basement while they fucked him. Izaya remembered that blond hunter specifically, knowing him as the one that had called him ‘Vorona’ repeatedly as he raped his ass while Izaya had been bent backwards on the cross-shaped examination table. He had indulged himself in his fantasy of Izaya in the place of his ‘sweet Vorona’ and how he loved ‘her ass’, how he’d ‘love to watch your face contort if I fucked you in front of your parents’ corpses. Too bad they were killed by vampires, huh?’. Another time, as if to add insult to injury, one of the other hunters had pretended he was Ruri.

Izaya shivered at the bitter recollection before he attempted to shove it back into the corner of his mind where he could lock it up again, tightly enough so that it could never be exposed to the light of mental scrutiny. The base of his wings shuddered in apprehension, rubbing them with his fingers to relieve his phantom ache.

“Well there’s no chance of fucking Ruri right now or that Sister, but at least that dirty bastard is available for tonight. If we could fucking catch him,” Horada gritted his teeth then barked at his men, “don’t fuck up the furniture! If that bastard Shizuo finds out, we’re screwed! Put them back in place!” Izaya could hear the groaning inside as more noises of scuffling on the wooden floor reached his ears.

“Tonight’s the only chance we’ve got. Before the dumbasses figure out that the church bell is a ruse, we’ve got to find that fucking vampire and kill him, or Father Shiki will have our heads!” Horada kicked one of his subordinates in anger as he kindly explained the entire strategy to Izaya, who listening with interest above them where he remained on the rooftop. ‘Honestly…humans are so dumb,’ Izaya shook his head as he stood up. He had enough of listening to the foolishness of the hunters searching for him when eventually the hunters would figure out he hadn’t been that far from them at all, hence the need to move quickly and escape from the cabin.

It was just too easy of course, to swoop down and massacre them all without the church knowing anything, except for the minor noting of their mysterious disappearances. He knew he could get away with it if he dumped the bodies in a river far enough from here to avoid suspicion or bury them in the depths of a lake that would freeze come winter. The vampire had plenty of chances every time he was at the church to exact his ‘revenge’ if he wanted to, though with each available opportunity, he failed to act on it. Not because the church would suspect him or he was afraid of Father Shiki along with any other humans.  Most definitely not because he didn’t want Shizuo to get in trouble or anything akin to that along that line of thinking.

But If he was angry at them or wanted revenge, it was admitting to himself that these puny, pathetic humans who were far below him, actually had managed hurt him. By accepting that these humans could have had a chance to impact him with his old memories, it was accepting that he, an aristocratic ‘vampire’, was at the same level as these banal, low-life ‘humans’, which he viewed as livestock, not unlike cows and pigs. As  vampire with the esteemed blood of nobility, Izaya could not tolerate such an act of humiliation. In the end, he was born and raised as a high noble and that dignity remained deep within the marrow of his bones.

So Izaya continued to lock up that numbing pain deep inside him time after time. Each time one lock came undone, the vampire quickly placed ten more locks, hoping he could keep it buried beneath the labyrinth of his mind. It was the only way he kept his sanity back then...and even now.

Izaya hopped off the roof and carefully glided down, moving closer to the forest in order to avoid the moon’s light to cast his shadow on the ground.Then, with the precision of a hare avoiding the hawk, he traveled away from the forest, moving closer to the church. If Horada’s gangs were still at his house and swarming like the kicked hive of bees they were, the first place those goons would look for would be the forested area behind the cabin with the assumption Izaya would hide himself there. Instead, Izaya knew that the best way to foil Horada’s plan was to find someone he could trust and stay with them until the threat of him and his men was resolved. With an eyewitness there, Horada and his men probably wouldn’t be able to lift a finger.

Probably, if he had the luck to carry through the idea.

Izaya used that logic and hoped he was right as he carefully crawled in the grass, closer and closer to the church grounds. He could still hear the cacophony of Horada’s men whispering and hissing at each other in panic, by the river where he washed the laundry every morning when the men suddenly gave up the forest and started running toward the church. Izaya knew time was running out for him in the unease of his heart rate picking up again, the tolling of the bell ignored over the sound of his thoughts rushing through his mind. The possibility of flying up to Shinra’s place...no, not possible. Not as he looked up and noticed the significant distance from him to Shinra’s with the third of a mile left where he stood at the river from the church grounds.  The sounds growing closer alerted him of Horada’s men approaching, too close for his liking and leaving not enough time to think through any other options.  They hadn’t found him yet and they were a good distance away, but Izaya was crawling at a slow pace compared to the eagerness of the hunters giving chase. In just a quarter of an hour, they would catch up. Izaya bit his lower lip indecisively. Should he make a break for it? Or should he…

Just then, Izaya noticed a shadow approaching him from the direction of the church.

 


	14. Chapter 14

"Find him! Find him dammit!"

Another voice chimed in. "Where the hell did he go?"

Horada's men had given up on combing through the forest once they realized they couldn't find any traces of Izaya ever entering the woods. Granted, it was dark and the vampire could fly, but they still tried to thoroughly search for signs of him lingering on the ground or scratched in tree bark that had signified his presence. However, once they had deduced that Izaya had never entered the forest, they doubled back to the cabin and trudged back toward the church. Horada was furious as were several others who had planned for a relaxing good time with the vampire only to be frustrated now that they couldn’t find him. What they had thought was an easy mission turned for the worst as they all did not want to face Shiki’s fury. Then came a lucky break, starting when they found a trail of broken twigs here and there with fresh mounds of dirt as if something heavy had been dragged.

"If I catch that fucker, I'm going to fuck his bloody ass til dawn!" Horada growled as he kicked into a sprint, running ahead. His team changed pace, moving to a run to catch up to their eccentric leader, carefully following behind.

"He headed for the river! Get him before the trail turns cold!"

Horada glanced around, keeping ahead of checking the area for the chance to spot the vampire, on foot or flying away as the lack of trees made his surroundings easy to search through. If the vampire had taken to flight they could easily bring him down, and if he had gone by foot, they could track him with the trail they had, only as far as the river before they would lose their chance.Just then, Horada heard the clicks and whispers of bladed weapons coming from their sheaths, a silhouette ahead of him causing him to do the same. Excited hoots and howls came from his men, anticipating capturing Izaya alive with their held weapons, planning of toying with their prey before revenge could be exacted.

"Wait, hold your fire. Is that you, Brother Horada-san?"

The voice was that of a woman, firm and calm, and the team was massively disappointed as they they drew closer to notice it was Sister Vorona with her guns drawn at her sides.

"Was the hunt good on your end?" she asked directly, eyes on Horada's face while he stepped over dry twigs and leaves into the moonlight. Disappointed, Horada growled back at the female hunter.

"What do you think? We lost him."

"Him? Have you identified the attacker as a male?" Vorona asked with a blank expression marred with seriousness as typical to her nature. The sight of her neutral frown brought Horada to a cold sweat, gulping and his team echoed the reaction involuntarily.

"I-It was a neutral pronoun, nothing more, haha. We thought we were following a trail." Horada smiled wryly, a shit-eating grin sliding over his sneer as he tried to cover for himself. There was no way he could let her know that they were trying to take out Izaya instead of searching for this anonymous 'attacker' that the bells had rung for.  

"I see. Well I am to hold down this front. Please get back to your position. We must not have a gap in our formation."

Horada tsked with a sigh that could be mistaken for disappointment. He didn't want to lose the trail but…it seemed that the trail headed toward the river in plain view in front of him, only it was missing the vampire he had been searching for..

"By the way…have you seen any vampires around here?" He casually inquired, meaning to make eye contact with Vorona as to not cause suspicion, turning back to run back to his so-called 'position'.

"No. Else I would have shot it down." Vorona said in a matter-of-fact voice.

"Not even say…Ruri-chan or that Izaya guy?" Horada eyed Vorona once more, giving her a look-over as he chewed on the inside of is cheek in an anxious tic, tired of having this petty conversation instead of satisfying his thirst for blood.

"No, I have not."

Horada scratched his chin but shrugged. Disappointment was an unbecoming expression, something that dissatisfied him immensely as the Sister dashed his hopes so easily.

The hunter turned to his squad, twitches of anger seeping into his tight expression as he gave a gruff order. "Alright men, back to our position! Go, go scat!"

Vorona watched as the men ran toward the river regardless, following the trail Horada had mentioned. Then they cursed loudly, reaching her ears while they neared the end of the trail by the bank of the river. The team then split into two directions, one following the river up while the other went down.

The Sister Hunter waited until all the men were nowhere in sight before she lifted up her skirt.

"I honestly can't believe that you hid me under your dress, you've got some guts." Izaya shook his head as he crawled out between the layers and layers of petticoats. "I owe you one. You have my thanks."

"It is not a problem. I don't believe you would care about female's undergarments since you wash them every morning without a fuss. The only perverted comments you've spoken were of senpai's."

"Hahaha…" Izaya awkwardly chuckled while scratching his head as if he was caught red-handed. He didn't realize that his perverted jokes were all related to Shizuo, having been making them without caring so much about mentioning the hunger over ruining his image.. True, he never did degrade women like Horada and his gang could do without second thought, brutally assaulting women in their fantasies, even when he was joking. And Vorona saw right through him.

"Are you heading back? Or should I walk with you?" Vorona offered, silent on the matter of questioning why Horada and his men seemed to be chasing him with such bloodthirsty enthusiasm. Izaya was impressed how much this Sister seem to trust him over her fellow church members, finding it odd until realizing his own bond with Shizuo over those of his own kind. Granted, Horada wasn't someone of high standards to begin with, though such discrimination between humans and vampires was such a normal practice that Izaya did notice that Vorona held no such prejudice.

"Mmm…I should be alright. They are at the river now so, if I ran counterclockwise, I shouldn't run into them. But then again…" Izaya pondered, glancing back toward the river with the amused smile of watching those fools run like headless chickens, hopelessly embarking on a pointless endeavor. There was the slight chance that Shiki had sent other men to find him inside the church too and if he ran into Shiki himself, it could get ugly.

"Will it be alright for you to leave your 'position'?" Izaya asked with a wink, testing Vorona's words and strangling his own vague sense of unease.

"This spot can be seen and targeted from the north gate tower so I do not believe it is a critical spot to hold. Of course, you could also stay with me and guard this position. It would give a good excuse for you and…" Vorona's lips twitched into a half smile, betraying her serious exterior with the wit of her intelligence. "I could use your help."

"You? Need help? Pfff…" Izaya chucked to himself, regarding Vorona with surprise. "You could probably take out ten vampires before one of them could lift a finger to cast a spell."

Vorona's eyes softened into what could be considered a fond smile, though the young woman wasn't used to such expressions.

"Then I thank you for your praise and expect your assistance in securing this position."

"Eh, don't mention it. Pretty sure it's going to be a long boring night. By the way, have I told you about that time Shizu-chan had this morning wood that lasted a whole h-Ouch!" Izaya exclaimed as the partially blushing Sister smacked his head with the butt of her gun.

"Orihara-san, please refrain from profane comments of senpai. I won't allow you to tarnish his reputation so easily."

"Eh…?! But it's going to be a really boring night without-Ow! Okay, okay I got it geez…"

* * *

Shizuo came back to the cabin with bleary eyes, exhausted from the unexpected 'outing' from last night. It was mid-morning by the time he had came back and though Izaya greeted him by the door, Shizuo was barely conscious enough to hold a conversation. Izaya kept asking him if they had found this 'attacker', was it a 'vampire', where was Shizuo stationed, etc, etc, etc as he helped the hunter strip off the armor faster so he could flop to bed. Shizuo half mumbled something about how they never did find the attacker, everything was disorganized, he had stationed with Brother Kuzuhara who was way too trigger-happy and kept ignoring his position to follow every single sound or flicker of shadows and how much that irritated Shizuo and for heaven's sake he had wished they had called off the alarm a lot earlier or had the hunters take turns taking watch. Finally with the last piece of armor off, Shizuo collapsed on the bed and snored.

"Ah, ah! Not yet Shizu-chan, not yet! Your boots…" Izaya sighed as he untangled Shizuo's dirty boots and yanked them off one by one. By then Shizuo had already fallen into deep sleep.

"...Welcome back Shizu-chan. It was a rather long night for both of us, huh?" Izaya sat next to the hunter on the bed, brushing away a strand of Shizuo's bangs from his eyes, taking in the peaceful sleeping face of the tired hunter. The vampire smiled softly, the kind that he would never show in front of anyone, especially his contractor. Once he confirmed that Shizuo was long gone, deep in his slumber, Izaya crawled on top of the bed and into the snoring hunter's arms, curling in toward him. The vampire would never tell him what kind of night he had, of how Vorona had stayed with him until the sun rose, even escorting him back to his cabin when the light started to burn his sensitive skin. Izaya bravely insisted that he would rather be alone, though as the sister left him he remained awake, nervously watching the walls and catching every sound he could pick up with his ears, leaving him in a mental tug o’ war in anticipating the return of Horada and his men. If they had seen him with Vorona later that night and followed them back, then it would be wise to stay awake and keep watch, despite having to give up his sleep for the night in case of any danger. Though Vorona's station was in between the church and the cabin, Izaya still worried that perhaps the men would circle around and ambush him from the thick of the forest, a risk he couldn’t take when alone.

With so many things to worry about, Izaya had remained awake, despite his heavy eyelids threatening to close. He knew Horada and his men would be too stupid to come back, causing needless worry, but it had not satisfied his anxieties. Now with Shizuo back, Izaya sighed as he finally closed his eyes to get some rest, feeling the sting of dryness and the ache of having been awake for far too long. From the back of his mind, Izaya knew that Horada would not let the chance slip to capture him even with Shizuo sleeping next to him, but somehow he felt a lot safer with the hunter there beside him. There was the possibility of other nights where Horada and his men would attempt to take his head, but for now, Izaya was safe. Safe enough to sigh, releasing a deep breath he had been holding and allowed himself to fall asleep in Shizuo's arms.

* * *

Fortunately for the vampire, the hunters never made another attempt on chasing or killing him. Still, Izaya had made sure that he wasn't alone often, the unpredictability of the men too much of a concern to ignore. He was with Vorona in the morning, doing the laundry with the other nuns, most of his time spent in the library or at Shinra's. During his breaks, he was off running with the kids or spending time in the kitchen with Simon, one of the cooks he befriended, chatting with him every now and then and or watching him prepare dishes for the church. Then of course, his nights were spent with Shizuo where they talked about what books Izaya had read that day or what Shizuo learned. Overall, it was almost peaceful way to spend the days.

No one knew why the bells were rung that day, the church only mentioning they were investigating but eventually everyone shrugged it off as just a fluke. Izaya figured that Shiki must have pulled some strings to keep the matter quiet.

Horada and those who associated with him were assigned to some mission the very next day and all of them were no longer at the church, leaving room to breathe now with their unexpected but welcome absence. At least on the surface, where Izaya wondered about what had happened to them but he knew that whatever it was, it probably wasn't very pleasant. Even though he wasn't planning to seek revenge on the group, he did quite enjoy the idea of them being 'thoroughly punished' by someone like Father Shiki.

Still, it did not mean everything within the church was safe to explore. Father Shiki was still a constant presence and his closest men were still with him, along with all the 'scientists' who had experimented upon Izaya with malicious glee. It was just that his 'lackey' had all gone missing, or rather, gone on an expedition.

Izaya stretched lazily one fine morning as he woke up to rustling noise and the fact that he wasn't wrapped in Shizuo's arms like every morning he had come to remember as a habit. The one great thing about the cabin was that it had heavy curtains so no sunlight could enter, leaving the room dark save for the small glow from the embers of the fireplace Izaya was fond of. Izaya woke up to the sounds of birds chirping and the roosters crowing usually. Shizuo also made sure that the fireplace was always lit so the place could stay warm even in the cold winter. It was really considerate of him.

The hunter also had the presence of mind to light a few candles so he could get dressed away from the bed so that the light wouldn't disturb Izaya too much. Still, the vampire was a light sleeper so he sat up as the warm heavy blanket fell off his shoulders, pooling over his legs.

"Mmm…Shizu-chan? Isn't it rather early for prayers?"

Izaya yawned, rubbing at his eyes and blinking in an attempt to wake himself up further. Normally, Izaya woke up first as Shizuo wasn't a morning person, meaning Izaya had to resort to pushing and kicking Shizuo to wake up so he wouldn't miss his morning prayers and eventually, breakfast. One time, a memorable moment for Izaya, the vampire had straddled him, sitting on top of him so his crotch rubbed against Shizuo's usual morning wood, then spanked him as if he was riding a horse. All in good fun, of course, though it certainly grabbed Shizuo’s attention immediately. Izaya had found it hilarious, cackling with glee when the tired brown eyes glared at him, Shizuo’s low growl coming as a warning that if Izaya did that again, he wouldn’t hesitate to ride Izaya and spank him back. With the threat of his strength in just one hand, Izaya considered the promise the hunter had made and decided it best not to irritate him further.

In Shizuo’s innocent state of mind induced by sleepiness, the vampire decided not to correct the hunter that 'riding' and spanking could be taken the wrong way. The cherry boy probably didn't even realize what he had just suggested, too innocent and almost too pure for understanding such an ‘adult’ thing. Izaya in turn flushed a pale red, murmuring that it wouldn’t happen again if Shizuo could remember to wake himself up.

At the very least, Shizuo didn't kiss him to shut him up.

Speaking of kissing, that had became a lot more frequent now as Izaya remembered it with hesitance. Though not always on the lips, as Izaya had gotten better and better and shutting up and covering his mouth with his hands as soon as Shizuo took a step forward, avoiding the surely inevitable punishment for chattering too much.

"Ah, sorry. I guess I came late last night and forgot to tell you. I'll be gone all day with Kasuka. But I should be home by tonight. Stay with Shinra or Ruri if you can. Ruri-chan probably would like your company." Shizuo greeted him by the bedside as he knelt to tie his boots. Izaya took the time to note that he wasn't wearing his armor, meaning that the strange occasion wasn't to go out and fight or practice.

"Heh…Ruri-chan? I don't know...she probably hates my guts actually," Izaya shrugged as he yawned again and rubbed his eyes again, the temptation of sleep creeping into the back of his mind. It was all Shizuo’s fault, as had gotten soft blankets and fluffy pillows for Izaya and he hated to get out of bed even when he was an early riser type. His fingers occupied themselves with lightly pulling the curtain open to see if the sun had risen yet.

"That's because you tease her too much," Shizuo remarked with a humored smile, walking over to  hold Izaya close, supporting the back of his head with a strong hand as the hunter kissed his forehead.

"I'll be back soon. Stay out of trouble."

And there it was, that kiss on the forehead. Shizuo had started kissing him more often, especially on his forehead before he left Izaya to do whatever was at hand at the moment. The vampire pouted and rubbed the wetness, the traces of Shizuo’s lips making his skin feel ticklish while his face felt warmer.

"As if I ever get in trouble~ It's everyone else who causes trouble around me and I just get dragged into it." Surely it wasn’t his fault. After all, he didn’t cause trouble, per say, but just exploited it.

"If I believed that the I'm sure the sun will rise from the west. Behave, Izaya." Shizuo waved he closed the door behind him, leaving Izaya with the cabin all to himself.

Izaya stared at the door as he listened intently to the sound of Shizuo's footsteps fading. He half wondered where Shizuo would be going but shrugged it off, taking the initiative to curl into the blankets and into sleep. Outside was the result of a cold December and he wanted to snuggle in his cocoon of warmth a bit longer before Vorona knocked on his door.

* * *

Izaya yawned as he stretched reclining in his stiff library chair, regretfully without cushions. It did give rise to the wishful thinking for the vampire, knowing the church was far too strict on its views on living a minimalist life without comforts.

Ruri's eyes flickered over to him as a  glance before she went back to reading, sitting across from him at the large round table. Without Kasuka, Ruri stayed mostly in the women's prayer rooms until a few nuns commented that the vampire was corrupting the air around the innocent believers, giving her an excuse to dismiss herself. Of course it was all bullshit but Ruri excused herself to find Izaya and stay with his companion even if she didn't truly desire it, more so staying as he felt uncomfortable in having any say of where she was allowed to roam within the church grounds. At the time Izaya was ranting to Shinra amicably while Shinra himself was talking over the vampire about this beautiful headless fairy he had met as a child when Ruri knocked the door and came in. With a third party in tow, Izaya couldn't quite freely speak about Shizuo...not with Ruri interrupting with a scowl to come in his defense.

Izaya gave up badmouthing Shizuo for the day and said his goodbyes then, finding no will to refute his stories over Ruri’s insistence of not tampering with Shizuo’s reputation. When he left for the library, Ruri quietly followed behind, maintaining a distance that left more than enough space between them, but still had the feel of babysitting a baby chick that was following him around like some hatchling in need of guidance.

Now, here in the library,Izaya took to studying while Ruri sat across from the round table and read her books as well.

Agitated, Izaya drummed his fingers before he slammed the book down, startling the girl.

"Okay Ruri-chan, why are you exactly here with me? I'm not exactly your favorite company. Don't you prefer to sit in some prayer room or something?" Izaya finally asked offhandedly, exasperation seeping into his words. "You being here feels like a shackle, like you're here to guard me or something and I don't appreciate that."

Ruri visibly paled in anger at Izaya's bluntness and being compared to a shackle of all things, though she steadied herself, and like a proper girl, she quietly lowered her book and answered in a calm, controlled voice. "Am I not allowed to be in your company?"

"Oh, cut the bullcrap. I know you don't particularly care so you don't have to flatter me. Or what? Did the nuns kick you out for stinking up the place again or something?"

Ruri's face flushed a bit and softly replied, "I was simply done with my prayers."

"Bull's-eye. So I was right," Izaya sighed as he kicked up his foot onto the table and leaned back. "You know, why don't you just go fuck it and do whatever you want? Like I said, they think the worst of you anyway so if you want to be a good girl and stay in the prayer room, then make them share the space with you. Or go into town if you enjoy shopping for girly stuff or whatever. I got no idea what you like to do but I think you like singing, right? I can hear you sing to the birds on top of the tower. You have a nicer voice in the choir, more than those other crones. So why not go buy books on music and songs?"

Ruri blinked in quiet surprise. At first, she had been growing increasingly angry with each of Izaya's rude gestures and remarks but this was the first time someone other than Kasuka had noted that she enjoyed singing in her alone times. Of course a few others like Brother Shizuo and Sister Vorona have complimented her singing voice but she had not expected to hear such from this vampire.

"I was simply done with my prayers. Or are you upset that you couldn't prattle about unflattering remarks of Brother Shizuo to good Doctor Kishitani?" Ruri made a comment instead, changing the subject and turning it around on Izaya.

"Aaaaah…that's true…I wanted to talk about how Shizuo has horrible sleeping habits but you just had to go interrupt at all the good parts with your proper goody-two-shoe ways. It really ruined the mood. And good doctor? Did you even hear him talk about that headless fairy? He can talk of his perversion for hours." Izaya moved his feet out of the way so that he could now lean forward and nestle his head in his arms. Ruri remained unfazed by the sudden action, her eyes wandering back to her book she had long since stopped reading.

"Please don't. Brother Heiwajima doesn't have good standings with the others, you need not ruin his reputation further. And same goes with the good doctor who's doing his best to help us." Ruri sighed, never understanding this vampire and why he found it fun to speak ill of his contractor and a doctor who was their benefactor.

"It's only Shinra. Not like he would go prattle about Shizuo anyway. It's not like I've gone and talked to Shiki about…" Izaya trailed off, remembering again about what Horada and his men spoke of concerning Ruri and the other women when they thought no one was listening.

"Speaking of which, it's kind of rare for Kasuka to not take you with him. Isn't he always with you?" Izaya changed the subject instead, derailing the conversation as Ruri had done before.

"What do you mean? Of course he won't take me with him." Ruri tilted her head in confusion, her  eyes widening a fraction with sudden realization. "He didn't tell you?"

"He didn't tell me what?" Izaya frowned, curiosity starting to rise up from the depths of his mind after they had settled from this morning.

"Ah, it's nothing." Ruri lowered her eyes.

Izaya could feel his vein pop and throb on the side of his temple with annoyance. What was it? "Ruuuuri-chan~ What do you mean nothing? What didn't he tell me what?"

"W-well, if Brother Heiwajima did not tell you then...I don't think I have the right to say." She hesitated, her eyes shifting from elbows on the table to her books as she contemplated.

"Oh? So it's not Kasuka but Shizu-chan who didn't tell me something huh? Well, then I can just go marching into Shinra's room and demand to know. I bet he knows right?" Izaya could feel agitation rising at the idea that everyone was tip-toeing around him and hiding secrets. He didn't like that one bit, resulting in pushing his chair back abruptly and starting to march for the door, knowing fully well the abrupt actions would cause Ruri to panic.

And much like Izaya predicted, Ruri got up in a panic and grabbed onto Izaya's cloak. "Y-You can't!"

"Oh so Shinra DOES know about this." Izaya turned around and grinned as Ruri fell for his tricks. He had already read her like a book and knew how to play her like a lute. "So, if you don't tell me now, I'm going to march into Father Tom's or Shinra's and ask what's going on. Maybe I'll even bother someone else say, Father Shiki?"

Fat chance Izaya would dare such a thing but he grinned even wider as Ruri visibly paled at the notion.

"F-fine. It's…not really a secret. Everyone knows…it's just a sensitive matter. I'm surprised you didn't remember but…" Ruri was rambling nervously as she hung her head and Izaya waited patiently as possible. She would blurt it out eventually.

"T-Today is the anniversary of their parent's death...you know."

"..."

There was a stunned silence that thickly veiled the library as the news sank in.

"Haha…oh. So it's the anniversary of my capture then. Huh..." Izaya shrugged it off as he gave a sidelong laugh.

"H-How could you say that! It's the day that y-you've destroyed their lives and took their parents’ lives!" Ruri fumed as she bristled. Izaya nonchalantly tugged at his cape, silently communicating to her to let go.

"Oh please. That was the day 'my' life got shackled to this godforsaken place. And you. You were human once right? Did you feel guilty for eating meat? That someone had to cut them up? Or did you bow in apology and beg for forgiveness to the grass as you pick them for your salad? Did you eat an omelet and then go find the mother hen and groveled for forgiveness for eating her baby chick?" Izaya huffed haughtily as Ruri looked up at him stunned at his words.

"I get that you were raised a human but have some pride as a vampire. Humans are our food. Just like you humans don't feel guilty or ask for forgiveness for getting your three meals a day, I'm not going to suddenly feel remorse for drinking blood."

With that, Izaya slammed the door behind him and left the library, leaving Ruri standing there speechless.

On the way back, Izaya walked slowly at first, his fists clenching at his sides as he moved into a brisk pace, moving faster and faster with each step as his control began to wane.  By the time he was at the fields, he was practically flying as he reached his cabin and flung himself to bed, burying himself in the mass of soft blankets and pillows Shizuo had gotten for their nest.

His nest. Shizuo never needed any of these. The hunter had gotten them for Izaya.

 _'Stupid Shizu-chan. You should have told me what today was,'_ Izaya thought to himself as he hugged one of the bigger pillows tightly against his chest.

* * *

The grave was almost a half day ride from the church in the next town over. Shizuo and Kasuka arrived on their horses that the church had lent them. Usually Shizuo preferred walking as he wasn't good at riding one, especially wearing so much armor, though because this wasn't a mission, they were wearing just travelling clothes. The house they grew up in was closer to a village, remote in its own area and a good distance from the city. The area had been carved into the mountains as most of them cut stones for living, slate and granite for roofing and building. Each house stood far from its neighbors, at least several acres of distance.

Shizuo and Kasuka did not visit their old home when in fact, they had never gone back there more than twice as the painful memories that came from each visit were far too much to handle.

Instead of spending time grieving over old scars of memories, they visited the grave. Their church was a small one where the priest there also worked in the mountains during the day to earn his income. It was as empty and quiet as it had always been with each visit, as everyone from the village would be out to work during the day. Shizuo and Kasuka tied their horses to the fence and walked over with the freshly cut flowers. They were a bit harder to find at this time of the month every year but the church always helped providing them for the Heiwajima brothers ever since they were old enough to go visit their parents’ grave on their own.

They knew by heart where the grave was by now. They laid the flowers to each mound. Kasuka stood while Shizuo squatted, lighting the incense despite the snow and the cold winter wind. They watched the smoke rise into the heavens in silence, silently gazing upon the stone with the names of their parents engraved in the solid rock. It was unfortunate that the anniversary always fell in the middle of winter and that the grave was at their old town which was in the middle of the mountains, none of which mattered. The Heiwajima brothers always came together to this spot on this day.

After a long silence that always followed, Shizuo broke the long unspoken tradition by speaking up.

"Hey, Kasuka."

"..." The younger Heiwajima looked down at his brother quietly.

"...Do you think our parents would be angry at me?"

"..."

They've had this conversation before, though back then, the topic was different and they were much younger. Shizuo was still a teenager and he was sullen as he wondered if their parents would have been disappointed at what he had become, nothing short of a monster with supernatural strength who couldn't hold down his temper.He had never been a model child, often failing in classes as a poor example of a student, unlike Kasuka who was a model student while Shizuo found himself always in one fight or another with the local kids.. Through time, Shizuo didn't care what others thought of him as he had believed that it was a lost cause anyway, no one would approve of who he was, so why would be bother to concern himself with what he could not change about his nature? Even then, he cared deeply if and when he had failed his parents.

But Kasuka's answer remained the same back then and now.

"No, brother. I think they would be proud."

"Y-You know, i wasn't talking about…"

"I know. You were talking about Orihara-san."

Shizuo clamped his mouth shut as his throat choked up, refusing to cry in front of his brother despite the fact his emotion always got better of him.

"Th-Think...they'd approve?"

"..."

"Y-You know...that I…work with him. T-To capture other vampires. Sure I started this as revenge but...haha… A true revenge is if I killed the vampire responsible for our parent's death right? But instead here I am working with that guy...and killing other vampires instead. Pitiful isn't it…"

"..."

So, he had been thinking about that, Kasuka thought to himself. He couldn't see his brother's face from this angle but he had a lurking suspicion that his brother's face would be very gloomy right now.

Kasuka exhaled softly, his eyes focusing back on the ground while his brother attempted to compose himself. "I don't think our parents would have cared for us to seek revenge. They would prefer us to be happy in what we do with our lives in the future."

"Haha…you always know what to say, don't you Kasuka?" Shizuo awkwardly chuckled to himself. "I thought of that. Or rather, I wanted to think that way. But I wasn't sure if...you know, I was finding excuses in my head. To justify what I'm doing as a hunter and why I'm still a contractor with...Izaya. I've…already forgiven him for what he did. To our parents…and to me. What he has taken away from us, our possible simpler future. I don't know if you've forgiven him or if...I'm allowed to forgive him without my parent's consent but…it's complicated isn't it?"

"Rest at ease, brother. There was nothing to forgive on my end." Kasuka wondered if he should add the next part but did not, preferring not to added that their parents weren't that shallow of a people but in all honesty, he was very young when they died. Shizuo would know them more than he did. He had no idea if their parents would be angry in their graves or not. But if what he learned at church was true, he hoped that their parents were really good people at heart. Even if they weren't, it was their own lives and their own choices to make. Dead people's opinions shouldn't count, as heartless as that may sound.

"Thanks Kasuka. Hah, guess it is alright for me to get along with Izaya. I really do want to get along with him, you know? I know a lot of people think it's wrong thing to do but..."

"Well, he is your vampire and you are his contractor." Kasuka replied in a matter of fact tone. "And you two are doing what's good for humanity despite your past history."

"Heh, it looks like it was me who got his head knocked down too hard back then instead of you from Izaya." Shizuo half chuckled again, the sound sardonic as it rang still in the crisp air between them while he stood up. "Thanks Kasuka, I needed that. It cleared my head a little. Sorry I'm not a good big brother." Then he put one arm around his younger brother and squeezed him tightly in a brotherly hug.

"Let's go back before we freeze out here huh?" Shizuo said as he rubbed his gloved hands together, turning to head back, following the snowy footsteps from earlier.

But Kasuka remained frozen in place as he watched his older brother. Something didn't make sense. Something…wasn't right…

_"Well that puts me in a difficult spot… Mind if you don't tell Shizu-chan?"_

_"Heh, it looks like it was me who got his head knocked down too hard back then instead of you from Izaya."_

"..."

It wasn't Orihara Izaya who had knocked Kasuka against the wall back then.

'...my brother doesn't remember.' Kasuka thought as the revelation dawned on him.

'That there were two vampires...that night.'

**  
**


	15. Chapter 15

 

It was early December, the air smelled of snow when Shizuo finally took his next mission. Part of him wondered if he and Izaya were ready   after their period of absence, right before the fiasco at the church, but there was no way to test it out unless they took a mission anyway. Besides, Shizuo didn’t want to be seen as a lazy or as a cowardly hunter especially when he knew of the closing window of time he had left to prove himself until the Holy Day. Starting in the middle of December, there was no way anyone would be able to go out on missions during the church’s mandatory presence for the holiday. So either they left before the celebration of the Holy Day or after, leaving Shizuo with the decision to head out early while the ground had not yet frozen over with thick layers of ice and snow.

Coincidentally, Horada and his gang came back from their ‘mission’ that very day. Shizuo didn’t know what it was or if it was only his observation, but they looked pretty beat and haggard. With the gruff looks on their faces, especially the dead look in their eyes as if they had seen something too horrifying to speak, he decided that it’d be wiser not to ask.

“Are you sure you’re warm?” Shizuo asked for the fifty-fourth time or so as they were walking up the snowy mountain trail, heading south of the church toward a remote village. The cause of concern had been a distress call, sounding like a possible case of bandits residing in the mountains rather than vampires but the church still needed to investigate any hints of vampire sightings as per the protocol. Even if the distress note had said that the vampires were stealing more than drinking their blood, Shizuo grumbled along the way that the government should send an army. Only that would be impossible since the military made it very clear with their statement that if ‘vampires were involved, it’s not our department’, regarding all cases of supernatural  to the church as its duty to eradicate. As a bonus, the church would want to send the duo with the most fire power…and the duo they won’t mind ‘losing’ since one of them was just a ‘vampire’. Easily replaceable, like livestock. The thought took Shiizuo’s mindset to a much darker strand of thought, something he dismissed quickly.

For this reason it caused worry with the fear that Izaya would be dragged into it all the time. Of course, he himself was oblivious to the fact that he was also one of the main factor played in all these inner politics and schemes, controlled by the church and used as a pawn. Unaware of his own importance, he only worried for his vampire. If only there was a way to keep him safer…

“I said I’m fine!” Izaya rolled his eyes and brushed off Shizuo’s hand from his arm, rolling his eyes as he puffed a breath of condensed air in the chill of the mountainous region. He couldn’t fly in this condition as his cape was bundled up with fur as Shizuo had insisted Izaya stay warm even if that meant limiting his movements. Besides, it wasn’t Izaya who reasoned that the wings should remain hidden anyway, though the snow was knee-deep and it was already annoying to have to walk instead of flying. On top of all of that, Izaya’s tolerance of Shizuo babying him was fraying rapidly.

It was a strange change in their behaviors. Normally, Izaya would whine and wish to be spoiled but now that Shizuo was actually trying to spoil him, Izaya didn’t want anything to do with Shizuo’s constant attention to his well-being.

“Hey, Izaya. The snow is kind of still soft, maybe we should find shelter?” Shizuo tried again, trudging through the snow at a faster pace to catch up. His armor was heavy, caused him to sink like a rock in water while Izaya was lighter and was able to walk further ahead. This setback worried Shizuo because the trail in the mountain was a bit narrow and the cliff wasn’t that far away. One wrong slip and they could fall easily...

“I said I’m fin-waaaah!!” Izaya turned around to yell at the hunter when he misplaced a foot, one leg sinking deeper than the other into a sudden soft spot in the ground. His balance strayed form him, harder to pull himself back upright without his wings to keep him up.

“Izaya!!” Shizuo dashed forward, his legs sinking further with each struggled attempt to gain speed but he managed to grab Izaya by the cloak and pull him up, holding him close while he backed up against the wall of the mountain, panting hard. Even Izaya remained still, his heart racing against Shizuo’s chest where he could clearly hear Shizuo’s heart pounding into his ear, thrumming in his skull with the heavy beat. They both knew how ‘close’ that was. One second too late and Izaya would have fallen down the cliff.

“...” Izaya waited quietly knowing that Shizuo would scold him. He always did. With not listening just now, Izaya deserved a scolding.

“Hey, are you okay?” Shizuo sighed deeply in relief once his heart calmed down, the rush of adrenaline fading from the pink tinge in his cheeks. Then with a peck to Izaya’s forehead, he changed the direction of the game even further. “Don’t scare me like that.”

Izaya glared up at Shizuo, mixed with emotions of confusion, disbelief, and anger when he knew he had just done something bad! He deserved a scolding!! So wh-why?!!! Why did Shizuo decide to treat him differently all of a sudden!

“You know…people normally don’t kiss each other.” Izaya mumbled instead, lowering his gaze with the decision not to voice his inner frustrations.

“...Father Tom used to kiss me on the forehead when I was a kid.” Shizuo countered with a nonchalant shrug. Izaya’s eyebrows twitched.

“I meant especially on the lips.” Izaya pouted while glaring back up at Shizuo.

“Does it bother you?” Shizuo asked softly, his gloved thumb lightly brushing the corner of Izaya’s pouty lips, not quite touching them.

The vampire stared up at those warm liquid amber eyes, his lips parting slightly to speak but he paused.

Did it bother him?

It did, right?

So why couldn’t he say it did?

No, he brought up the topic because he didn’t want to be kissed…right? But now that he had the opportunity to voice it, his words froze from his throat and refused to come out, his eyes entranced by Shizuo’s. He knew the human had no power to charm with his eyes like he did but strangely, Izaya could not speak as their eyes searched each other. The silence hung in the air with unspoken words while the two felt lost in each other’s eyes.

*BOOM!*

There was a loud cracking sound above them and the two were abruptly interrupted as they both looked up.

Something broke loose, forcing the sudden quakes in the ground to interrupt them as the mountain started to shake. Snow began to fall in sudden enormous bursts from the side of the mountain, gaining momentum as it picked up rocks and trees in its downhill slide running straight toward them.

“Izaya! Hold on!” Shizuo held him tighter and turned them around so Izaya’s back was against the wall, the vampire’s eyes widening as he came to realize they were going to be buried alive while directly in the path of the oncoming avalanche. What was worse, they were on the trail with the cliff’s edge. If the snow dragged Shizuo away and fell…then!

“Shizu-chan! No, I got a better idea! Just help me unwrap this cape and!” Izaya tried to hurriedly tug at the cloak around his neck. If he could somehow fly away…!

“There’s no time! It’s coming!!” Shizuo punched the rocks behind Izaya, forcing the rocks to crack and fracture, threatening to crumble under his massive strength. The vampire’s eyes widened as the hunter continued to punch hard, breaking large chunks away to make a small hole, just enough to tuck Izaya inside. The blond then pushed himself closer to the wall with Izaya in between, gripping onto the rocks behind Izaya firmly and bracing himself with at least being able to duck his head inside the crater he had just made. If he could just somehow survive this with Izaya under him, he probably could punch through the snow, Shizuo figured. He wasn’t as worried about being buried….but was more worried about being separated from Izaya. Then he would fail in protecting him again!

The snow fell like rocks rather than soft rain, pounding into any surface it touched as soon as it came tumbling closer and closer. The avalanche grabbed everything it could to spit it far away, drawing in a mix of broken tree limbs, rocks and dirt to scrape along in the deafening roar as the ground continued to quake with ferocious rage. Izaya watched in horror in their final moments before any visibility had been stolen from them, the rush of the avalanche slamming on  top of Shizuo in a split second. Shizuo cringed with the sudden aggresive force, his eyes closed as he tried to hold on even as the mountain tried to rip him away from Izaya. The vampire could plainly see Shizuo’s face in front of him contort with pain, knowing fully well that no normal human would have been able to hang onto the mountain sliding down on him like this!

“The cross!” Izaya shouted as one of the huge tree slammed against Shizuo’s back and ripped away the gigantic golden cross that the blond always carried. Hearing and feeling the cross being ripped from his back, Shizuo turned to look behind him.

That was his fatal mistake.

“Shizu!!” Izaya cried out as the thick sliding mountain poured in front of Shizuo and in between them.  Instantly the thick rain of snow filled the air in front of them as they coughed and choked, their eyes tearing up with burning irritation. Izaya’s heart was gripped with fear as slates of snow and gravel poured down onto Shizuo’s iron arms like waterfall. Even with his grip, the torrent was just too strong as the rocks that Shizuo held onto broke loose under the sheer amount of force raining down on him. If Shizuo were a normal human, the mud and snow crashing into him would have chopped off his arms.

“Shizuo!!!” Izaya coughed as he saw the landslide take him away. _His Shizuo_. Mother Nature was forcing them apart!

Before Izaya could rip off his cloak to launch himself despite the wall of ice, a hand shot up from the waterfall of snow and gravel and grabbed onto the side of the hole Shizuo had created. Izaya quickly grabbed the bloody hand and pulled as hard as he could, his brain not registering the bruising and bleeding that marred Shizuo’s hand. Shizuo panted roughly as he somehow climbed up despite the avalanche of snow, an inhuman feat while little by little, Izaya could see that the blond’s head was heavily bleeding. He quickly wrapped his arms around the hunter’s neck and hugged him close, knowing fully aware that he was very close to losing him, and still afraid that the Mother Nature will take him away from him. There was a lot less debris falling right now as the worst seemed to be over, echoes of the avalanche further below them now as it fell in the manner of a death trap coming to snap its jaws shut on the ground below.

“Stupid Shizu-chan…you stupid idiot.” Izaya held him close, trembling. He had no idea why he was shaking so badly when he thought he could lose him. Shizuo was just his food…right?

“Sorry…are you mad that I’m wasting my blood?” Shizuo chuckled softly, his panting voice hot against Izaya’s ear as each breath created small puffs of steam.

“Yeah, I’m pissed.” Izaya swallowed a lump forming in his throat.

“Want to lick it?” Shizuo tried to turn his head to look down at Izaya but couldn’t. He was too tall and the small hole wasn’t big enough to move around in.

“Ew, no! You’re really dirty!” Izaya hissed.

“Haha…” Shizuo chuckled weakly in response. They waited as the mountain continued to shudder, the tremors dying down as the two endured in silence.

“...Does it hurt?” Izaya asked after a while, his breath coming in short bursts. Despite the smaller tremors, Izaya could see the snow outside was piling up right behind Shizuo.

“...A bit.” Shizuo chuckled as lightly as he could. Then to lighten the mood further, he joked, “Kisses might help but you don’t like-mmff.”

Shizuo was caught surprised as Izaya immediately pulled him down and kissed him squarely on his lips. The hunter closed his eyes and silently kissed back as Izaya licked his mouth before sucking on his lower lip. Shizuo did the same, lightly sucking on the vampire’s upper lip while Izaya tugged on his lower, his teeth slightly grazing it. Then Shizuo groaned as their tongues met,  Izaya’s was so soft against his. It almost surprised the hunter when the vampire’s tongue entered into his mouth but he followed the suit, sucking and licking everything with his tongue, feeling the warmth that carried over. It felt good. It felt really good. Shizuo had no idea that kissing like this could feel so good. He could feel his own body tremble at the sensation as his own cock throbbed at the tingling response. He hungrily started devouring Izaya’s mouth and his tongue, his fingers gripping hard on the rocks, almost crushing them. Though Shizuo may be inexperienced, he learned fast and it made Izaya’s knees weak with how the hunter started to ravish his lips and tongue like a starving wolf.

“Sh-Shizu…hnnnngh…mmmnngh…!”

Izaya gasped for breath as Shizuo continued to kiss back passionately, learning that using his tongue to lick Izaya’s earned him the most moans. And the tongue was where Izaya was most sensitive as it sent him reeling. Shizuo loved the little trembling breath and he wanted more; he didn’t know how or why...just that he wanted this to feel good for Izaya as much as it made him feel good.

They were lost in each other’s embrace as the world turned dark in that small tunnel Shizuo had created. The snow had built up and covered behind Shizuo’s back, completely blocking them in. Even as the oxygen was slowly depleting and the light started to fade with the semi-translucent snow wall behind them, the two didn’t stop kissing, absorbed in their own world.

“Sh-Shizu…” Izaya finally broke off their kiss, panting harshly.

“Y-Yeah? What is it? Did I hurt you?” Shizuo quickly asked in panic when Izaya withdrew.

“N-No, it’s just...I think we should stop.” Izaya swallowed hard. He wanted more, his body was begging for more. It hurt to stop in the middle, but he knew that if they continued any further, it would be impossible to refuse later. And this wasn’t the best place or time for this.

“Y-Yeah. You’re right.” Shizuo agreed with a deep sigh, closing his eyes. He held Izaya close and they could both hear each other’s heartbeat racing hard. And Izaya could definitely feel Shizuo’s hard-on rubbing against him, twitching in frustration. It made Izaya’s cheeks burn with the thought that it was _him_ who made Shizuo this horny.

‘Sorry…’ Izaya apologized inwardly. He did want more but he didn’t want to cross that line. If he did, it meant he would be accepting a human to be an equal to a vampire and Izaya just wasn’t ready for that yet.

When they finally calmed down, they both realized that the mountain’s tremor had stopped.

“Should we try to leave?” Shizuo asked, unable to turn around.

“Well...we should wait just a bit to see if there’s an aftershock too…” Izaya fidgeted. It was rather embarrassing to be in this position with Shizuo, their bodies pressed so close together. Izaya was more than just afraid that Shizuo could hear his heart beat and know what he was feeling…and thinking. Along with the possibility of him realizing how aroused he actually was from their exchange.

“You’re right as always,” Shizuo wrapped his arms around Izaya and sighed, placing his chin on top of the vampire’s head to relax. The kiss felt good, something new he learned today. He learned that kissing with his tongue made everything feel even better. It was more then the hunter had ever dreamed of, but the innocent hunter had no idea what ‘more’ he could have done. All he knew was that he wanted more. He wanted to kiss Izaya more and touch him more, see him more and feel him more, akin to a craving he couldn’t satisfy

But for now, he willed himself to be satisfied with what he was able to get.

They waited for a bit more to make sure there were no more tremors. Then Izaya nodded in agreement that they should try to get out before they were in danger of suffocating.

Shizuo tried to push back, the snow so thick that the rocks he was holding crumbled in his hands first. However, he made enough room for him to finally turn around, leading to starting to punch and kick at the block of ice and snow until finally he was able to make a tunnel large enough for them to crawl out of.  With his larger body, Shizuo climbed out first, then grabbed Izaya’s hand and pulled him out. Izaya shivered as he was slapped with the cold winter wind again, already used to the apparent warmth in the tunnel...and was surprised that the cramped space didn’t make him panic. Not that he had any real paranoia of being trapped in small rooms, as Izaya refused to believe that he had such nonsensical phobia, except it did make Izaya nervous being trapped. Though with Shizuo with him, Izaya realized that he wasn’t scared at all even though technically he had been trapped down there.

If he was alone and trapped, and had Shizuo fallen from that avalanche, Izaya was pretty sure he would have panicked and had a breakdown. A small one, nothing big of course.

Izaya was then thinking how he hadn’t had a nervous break down or nightmares in a long time since that mission that led them to Sonohara Anri when Shizuo’s voice snapped him back to reality.

“Are you okay? Not cold?”

Shizuo was already carefully wrapping up Izaya first now that they were back out where Izaya could clearly see how badly injured Shizuo was. The hunter was bleeding everywhere!

“W-Wait! You look really hurt!!” Izaya grabbed the edge of his cloak to try to wipe off the blood streaming down from Shizuo’s head. It looked really bad! He had cuts and bruises everywhere. And that was just the visible areas…Izaya felt horrified to think what state this man’s body must be in!

“I’m fine. I don’t really feel any pain. Besides, we’ve got to find my cross first. It fell all the way down...looks like we’re going to have to get off the trail to the village. We need to find it before the sun sets.” Shizuo shook himself of excess debris, using his sleeves to wipe off the blood from his face.

Izaya looked up at the sky, recounting that Shizuo had wanted to travel during the morning because of the snow and hoped to reach the village by noon since the sun would hurt the vampire. It was too dangerous to climb the mountain trail in the dark. However, now the sun was already past noon and was making its descent to the west.

“We only have about four to five hours of light. Do you think we’ll make it?” Izaya asked worriedly, entertaining the idea if he could get Shizuo to a doctor.

“One way to find out. Come on.”

Shizuo started to walk down the trail to a fork where it led toward the ravine rather then the mountain village. It was a lot less travelled path, more of a deer path than anything else and it worried Izaya since the mission mentioned about mountain bandits.

Still, the vampire followed wordlessly behind the hunter.

  
  


* * *

 

 

Four hours had passed and the sun was on the horizon, slowly sinking below in vivid shades of red, wispy pink, and darker oranges and purples. Shizuo and Izaya were still climbing down, looking everywhere for the cross, a task that would not be described as difficult, oh no. It was more than difficult, what with the avalanche having covered up a lot of the ground and they couldn’t find any road or signs. There were broken trees everywhere among the piles of snow on top of the land they had to cover to find this cross, stretching out further than just a small field. They could be walking on top of the buried snow and not even notice.

Luckily for them, Shizuo’s cross was enchanted. Every few yards, Shizuo would invoke his incantation in hopes that the cross would fly back into his hands even if it were buried deeply. Izaya had learned about the cross of course and that it could be summoned to the wielder when it was called upon. It was an old relic, normally too valuable for someone of Shizuo’s rank to use, its magical ability involving gravity where anything and everything under the cross would feel the heavy weight of gravity. And only Shizuo was strong enough to withstand it and function under the direct hit.That and the cross itself was heavy, composed of a material called oricalum, which didn’t break or bend unless in extreme heat. Best of all, it could withstand Shizuo’s supernatural grip. Since no one was strong enough to carry such a heavy cross or withstand its gravitational force, it was given to Shizuo after his 10th or so expedition. Shizuo had came back from each mission with more broken weapons than bringing them back whole so ever since he had received the cross, the church budget became more stable. Even if Shizuo was considered too low a rank for such a treasure, church figured that their budget was more important than having an old relic be abandoned in their storage collecting dust anyway.

Which was also why Shizuo wanted to find this cross badly. Not only would he be in trouble for losing an old artifact, but it was one of the rare weapon he had that didn’t break on him. The runed dagger he carried could cut his skin but he couldn’t really use it to fight since his grip could still crush the handle.

After about a hundred times or so of invoking the spell, Izaya gave up and sat down on a half buried boulder while Shizuo searched this way and that. They covered a lot of ground but there was still more than half a valley to look into and they still had no idea if they had accidentally walked past the buried cross.

“Ne, Shizu-chan...I think we should start thinking of shelter.”

“Erm, yeah. In a minute.”

Izaya sighed as he watched Shizuo search in a futile attempt. It would take at least two to three hours to get back to a nearby village to sleep unless they wanted to camp out. What preoccupied more was that the vampire really wanted to get Shizuo’s wounds treated. He could act tough but Izaya could see that the armor was badly dented and Shizuo was probably very bruised underneath. Not to mention all that bleeding...Izaya had a bad feeling about all this as he watched a crow fly away, cawing loudly.

“Ne, Shizu-chaaan~”

“Let me look over here then we can go,” Shizuo stubbornly continued his search.

Izaya sighed again and plopped his chin between his folded arms, nestling on top of his knees as he watched, continuing his anxious virgil.

The vampire listened as another crow flew away from a branch and he thought he heard an owl with the sun was sinking fast. Izaya wouldn’t mind camping out normally but with the recent avalanche, he didn’t want to risk being buried under in case another followed. The snow was loose right now and he didn’t think it was safe.

When a third crow flew by, something didn’t feel right. The forest felt too quiet even though that could be due to the avalanche and all the animals must have fled for safety. But the silence was too eerie and uncanny.

“Erm, Shizu-!!!” Izaya suddenly got up as he saw a shadow move between the trees.

Shizuo heard the alarm in Izaya’s voice and snapped his head up. He then noticed them.

The vampires.

The hunter quickly closed his gap between himself with Izaya as he ran over to him and stood in front. Even the blond could feel the cold sweat drop as the vampires started to pop up between the trees.

They weren’t just one or two.

Not even ten or twenty.

It was an army. More than a hundred as far as Shizuo and Izaya could see despite the dark trees blocking their view. And these vampires wore armor. They looked golden in the setting sun, glimmering brightly as the sun’s dying rays hit their armor plates.

“...Shit,” Shizuo cursed as he swallowed hard. He couldn’t help but laugh inwardly.

This time, they were in serious trouble.

They were surrounded in no time as the vampires drew closer. The sun was fading quickly and it was only that small glimmer of sunlight that kept the vampires still in the shadows and under the trees. Shizuo and Izaya knew that they would attack as soon as the sun hides behind the horizon. Izaya bit his lip, chewing nervously as his mind began to race. Due to the sunlight, he had his hoodie over his head, hiding his ears. He was sure that the vampires had not realized that he was one of them.

Did he dare try to trick all of them by taking off his hoodie and say he was one of them while Shizuo was just his pet? It had worked for Sonohara but...these men were different. They were scavengers or bandits it seemed at a glance. But the number was way too large. Unusually large. This wasn’t normal at all.  

Besides, there was a high chance that among them, someone might recognize him as Orihara Izaya. Without having any information whose side these vampires were, Izaya couldn’t quite risk revealing his identity.

When the sun finally tipped over the edge, the vampires that circled them charged. Several of them leaped forward while others jumped high to attack from above. Izaya backed up against Shizuo’s behind to cover him while the hunter grabbed a tree trunk and uprooted it. The vampires faltered at the supernatural strength, majority of them in disbelief as Shizuo swung the tree like a bat. The vampires screamed as a couple of them were struck with the swinging trunk, sending them flying into the sky.

“What the hell, is he a vampire?!”

“No, that’s a hunter for sure! Look at his armor and cross breastplates!”

“Maybe he cast himself a spell that made him stronger?”

The vampires whispered to each other as a few of them took a step back. But seeing that there was a smaller man behind the monster, they gathered in front of Izaya to attack.

Only Shizuo was faster. He swung again, almost in a 360 degree spin, catching as many vampires as he could with the long tree trunk, throwing all of them into the sky once more. They were in a stalemate as there was a huge circle around the duo as the vampires could not get within the diameter of the tree’s length.

Shizuo growled as he grabbed Izaya and held him close to his chest possessively.

“If you touch him, I’ll kill you!”

The blond hunter declared his war cry like a guard dog growling at his enemies. The army of vampires stepped back a bit, unable to find a way to penetrate Shizuo’s defense. While for Izaya, he could feel his ears blushing and his cheeks burn hot. Despite the embarrassing declaration, Izaya was impressed at how Shizuo could single-handedly hold on his own against an army of vampires. Though Izaya wasn’t sure how long Shizuo could last, especially with his injuries.

Then the stalemate was interrupted as the circle of vampires parted like the Red Sea to let one single vampire through.

“I didn’t want to believe my eyes and I thought the sunlight was playing tricks on me. But if it isn’t the Duke Orihara...or should I say, the  _Earl_  Orihara now?”

Izaya’s heart froze at that mocking voice. Shizuo remained still, scowling at the young boyish vampire who walked up to them. The hunter’s hand still remained wrapped around Izaya’s waist possessively.

The boyish vampire had a blond hair and silver earrings. He looked young, almost as young as the Sonohara Anri. But that expression he had was anything but that of a young boy. It was grim and a serious face, a countenance that expressed that he was mature beyond his years.

“Why if it isn’t Kida Masaomi,” Izaya forced a smile as he pulled his hood down, seeing that it was pointless to hide his face.  “Long time no see, Kida-kun.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And now Kida-arc begins ahahaha! Thank you for all the reviews so far! I love getting them and I love reading them over and over on sad days. It's Halloween month! I hope to update often :3


	16. Chapter 16

 

"It's been a while, hasn't it. You've got good eyes as usual." Izaya smiled amicably as possible though it was all a facade.

Shizuo was startled by the name but remained still, recalling the name Izaya had drilled into him along with the other names of the main leaders of the vampire society. Shizuo sucked at memorizing names and was worse at remembering faces but he did hazily recount that this Kida Masaomi was a big one. However, they had gone over this before and when situations like this arose, Shizuo was to let Izaya take over and do all the talking while the hunter just followed his lead.

"You know far well that Dollars aren't allowed in this territory." Kida scowled.

 _'Dollars?'_  Shizuo was puzzled but did not say anything. Again, he had to trust Izaya and let him negotiate.

"Mmm…I've been out of touch lately and I had not realized that the Yellow Scarves territory extended this far up north. Thought you guys were more south. My bad~ Will you take my apology and let me go?" Izaya smiled lightly, which only seem to anger the Yellow Scarves. Shizuo wasn't sure why Izaya wasn't apologizing properly if he really meant it. And why were they being assumed as part of the Dollars?

"Do you take me for a fool, Orihara-san?" Kida scowled deeply, his eyes narrowing with contempt.

"Of course not, Kida-kun~ Sharp as always. I was just joking. Actually, I came for-" Izaya remained jovial but he was rudely interrupted.

"Down with the Dollars!" A snarl of a voice broke the quiet, earning murmurs of agreement.

Another joined in, louder this time with disgust, banging at his gold breastplate with his fist. "How dare you mock our Shogun!"

"Don't act so friendly, you traitor!"

The crowd grew hostile and ugly fast as some of them started throwing rocks and spears at them in petty anger, though before any of them could actually reach Izaya, Shizuo swung his massive tree, silencing the crowd with his awesome display of power.

"I said, if you hurt him, I'll kill you." Shizuo growled once more to the awestruck army, making himself inherently clear.

"Now, now. There's no need for us to fight, we come in peace." Izaya tried to placate the vampires, his smile unwavering. With that mammoth guarding him so protectively, the vampires knew they couldn't touch him.

Kida's eyes flickered, eyeing Izaya as he remained distrusting and insulted by that calm smirk while being surrounded by his enemies. It was the same Izaya that he remembered and hated. "So, why are you bringing a hunting dog to our territory if you're not here to declare war?"

"How shrewd of you. As expected of the Shogun of the Yellow Scarves." Izaya smiled. "I came to talk. Trade information, if you'll be so kind. And this one is a hired mercenary actually. A bodyguard of some sort. Impressively strong, isn't he?" Izaya petted Shizuo's hair and the blond just growled at Kida to make a point.

"A mad dog indeed…" Kida grimaced, making a clicking noise with his tongue to dismiss Shizuo's unsightly presence.

"Fine, what kind of information are you so desperate for if you decide to step into our territory willingly, given our past relationship and being fully aware how much I despise you?" Kida rolled his eyes as he waved as his men to back off.

"Desperate? Oh no. I'm here to offer you information on the Dollars and the church. Does that sound enticing enough for you?" Izaya offered with a smile. Shizuo could feel his hair rising at the idea that Izaya might actually sell the church's secrets. Actually, did Izaya know of any? Or was this all still a bluff to get them out of this sticky situation? "Aren't you curious? As to why the Dollars and the church is growing faster and stronger so suddenly?"

Shizuo watched as the young vampire leader's eyes twitched. It looked like Izaya had hooked him on with the bait and was ready to reel him in.

"You didn't answer my question. What information did you want from us? I'm not interested in dealing with the devil like you." The young leader of the Yellow Scarves remained suspicious, the deep frown on his face turning to a scowl.

Izaya kept his tone light, cheerful, almost."It's simple really. Like I said, I've been out of touch and I need some information."

Kida's expression remained severe despite his attempt to remain diplomatic. "I'm not selling you information regarding the Yellow Scarves."

"I wouldn't dream of it! In fact, what I want is something quite beneficial to you as well." Izaya spoke so smoothly and confidently, everyone couldn't help but feel drawn toward his words. What could this sneaky vampire offer to them despite being surrounded by his enemies? Why would he risk his own life and hire a bodyguard, a vampire hunter on top of that, to come here? Kida and the others just couldn't help but be curious. Izaya knew this better than anyone and played them like a lute.

"This is no place for us to talk politics," Izaya spread his arms to mean the army bearing down on them. "Why not call a truce and talk somewhere more private?"

"I don't trust you. It sounds like you're plotting something." But Kida didn't sound so sure. Izaya smiled in that 'I understand perfectly' kind of smile that always seem to irritate both Kida and Shizuo. "Fine. Let's at least hear you out, as long as you keep your dog on its leash." Kida pointed at Shizuo, referring him as a 'dog', which made the hunter growl back. Izaya couldn't help but laugh inwardly at how well Shizuo played his role, whether he knew it or not.

Kida huffed back with finality. He figured that since they were stalemate anyway, he could at least listen to what Izaya had wanted, despite the danger of the infamous Izaya manipulating him. But Kida knew better and he vowed to make sure he would decide to take Izaya's words with grain of salt. He wanted to make his decision in the best interest of the Yellow Scarves and he knew fully well that sometimes that meant even taking advice from a venomous snake that betrayed him once. After all, it was what had caused his Yellow Scarves to grow smaller after a battle with the Blue Squares, all because he had just 'listened' to Orihara Izaya. But that was another matter. Kida wasn't the same young lord and he wouldn't be making the same mistake twice, or so he told himself.

"How is Saki?" Izaya asked casually, walking over to Kida. Shizuo walked right behind him, scowling at the young blond leader of the Yellow Scarves. The vampires looked at Shizuo nervously and looked back at their leader for some signal to attack and instead Kida just waved at them to stand down.

"Saki's fine," Kida snapped his mouth shut as if he was offended to which Izaya smiled smugly.

Shizuo felt a bit awkward that he was a hunter surrounded by vampires he couldn't 'hunt', setting aside his inner turmoil as he understood the need for 'politics'. More than anything, he wanted to get out of this alive with Izaya unhurt, meaning he would follow quietly.

It was weird to see Izaya back in his natural surroundings. Back at that Sonohara girl's palace too, Izaya was wearing an elaborate clothes and the vampires had given him respect and here as well, despite how much this Kida kid seem to despise Izaya personally. Even as Izaya remained playful, it wasn't outwardly childish and Kida too was guarded though he took the raven vampire with a grim gravity.

Speaking of which, didn't Kida call him…Duke? Earl? Sonohara did as well...they seemed to be using the title almost interchangeably.

What exactly had happened to Izaya in the past?

They were guided to a river which they followed upstream where from there Shizuo and Izaya were led behind a waterfall to a short tunnel. Shizuo was once again amazed to see that at the end of the cave was a valley of yet another vampire community. This one seemed even larger than Sonohara's town, the biggest difference between this place and Sonohara's town was that this city was clearly ready for 'war.' Sonohara's town felt like a civilian home in comparison with humans farming and carrying carts of items and food. This city was bustling with vampire men in full armor and cleaning their weapons. There were no merchants or haggling or children playing in the streets that Shizuo had seen with Sonohara's place. Instead he saw mostly male vampires hammering at their tools or practicing their swordsmanship against each other. There were sounds of brawl from inside of what seemed like a tavern and there were young male vampires wrestling in mud in the middle of the streets while the crowd gathered to gamble. It was almost like a culture shock for Shizuo.

"Izaya-san!"

Shizuo looked up to see a small brunette vampire run toward them and hug Izaya fiercely.

Izaya's gaze softened as he met the brunette's eyes "Ah, Saki. We were just talking about you. How are you doing?"

"Very happy, Izaya-san," the vampire named Saki beamed at Izaya as he pet her head. Again, Shizuo felt awkward to around all these vampires who seem to know the Izaya he didn't know at all.

"Kida-kun isn't mistreating you I hope?" Izaya teased to which Kida looked even more offended as he shouted, "Never!"

"He's been very good to me," Saki smiled brightly, her eyes sliding to Shizuo in a moment of curiosity before she turned her attention back to Izaya.

"Better than me?" Izaya obviously couldn't help teasing as Kida looked even more furious. Shizuo rubbed his temple as he watched the bittersweet exchange, not quite understanding what Izaya enjoyed about riling up this blond kid. Weren't they technically at his mercy? Or was this one of Izaya's tactics?

"That's an unfair question, Izaya-san," Saki smoothly dismissed answering it, much to Kida's disappointment as Saki did not clearly speak for his behalf.

They were led to a meeting room. It was a large conference hall with coat of arms hung on the stone walls. Tapestries, tall and grandiose in their designs, told the tales of their ancestors and their epic battles along the stone they blanketed.

"Come, I'll have the refreshments ready." Saki boldly grabbed Shizuo's wrist to lead him away from Izaya, chirping happily while failing to notice Shizuo's sudden expression of confused surprise.

"Ah, but…" Shizuo hesitated and looked back at Izaya who was being led to the long table for the conference with the leader of the Yellow Scarves.

Izaya shot him an easy smile, reassuring that he would be fine despite what Shizuo had seen so far. "It'll be alright Shizu-chan. I'll just have a small chat with Kida-kun. I should be safe by myself."

Shizuo scowled, understanding that Kida did not trust him, a hunter, enough to have him included in the conference. As with Sonohara Anri, the leaders of the vampires simply could not trust a hunter from the Nebula organization. For good reasons, Shizuo knew.

The blond hunter sighed and parted ways with Izaya, following Saki.

He was led to the palace garden, a quiet enough of a place with a small fountain in the middle. The garden was minimally decorated as it seemed it was created just for Saki's sake, a little place for peace and beauty amongst the surrounding muck and war. Shizuo could see Izaya and Kida through the tall iron-barred gothic windows as they took their seats and that was good enough for him.

Shizuo sat down inside the white ivory gazebo with green vines. To the hunter's surprise, the female vampires laid down a tray with a cup of clear liquid which looked like water and a plate full of fruit.

The blond pointed at the plate questioningly.

"Ah, we do have human guests now and then. Besides, we use the fruit for wine, so we have plenty in our garden," Saki smiled at the hunter as she sat across from him, sliding into her chair daintily. "Please, have some. The water and fruit are not tainted with blood so it should be alright for you."

Shizuo nodded gratefully and took an apple and bit into it, testing the food so graciously offered to him. Sure enough, it was just a normal apple, sweet and ripe, which gave him more reason to hungrily wolf down a few more. Saki cupped her face with her hands and smiled.

"Now then, please do tell me. What is your true relationship with Orihara-san?"

Shizuo coughed as he choked on apple before clearing his throat to answer. "What do you mean, my true relationship?" He spluttered as he wiped his mouth, swallowing heavily.

Saki rolled her eyes, her smile saccharine as she regarded him with a giggle. "Oh please. You can't be telling me that a hunter actually is working with a vampire now? I've never heard of it before." She beamed, innocence clearly attempted in her smile.

Shizuo glanced to his side. Izaya seemed to in a deep discussion with the blond leader of the Yellow Scarves. The boy named Kida seemed to have a grave expression while Izaya's remained pleasant. It looked as if he was safe enough in there, Shizuo hoped that Izaya wasn't actually telling any church secrets.

It should be safe, Shizuo thought to himself. Izaya didn't actually know any secrets anyway, or so Shizuo figured.

"There are other hunters who have contracts and cooperate with vampires. My brother is one of them." Shizuo shrugged as he bit into another apple. "And you guys don't know of us because we've been successful in our missions. If the word did get out, the vampires cooperating with us probably could be in trouble, so we keep it in the down low." It wasn't a complete lie. Besides, there were other contractors probably in other churches…right? They couldn't be the only ones.

"Heeeh~ really now? So what do you get out of protecting Orihara-san?"

"I get to kill vampires." Shizuo shrugged again, trying to answer as short as possible. He didn't want to reveal too much...what would Izaya do in this situation?

Oh, Izaya would dodge the question and change subject, probably.

"And you. How do you know Izaya? And how come that Kida guy hates him but you seem to...like Izaya?" Shizuo tried to get this Saki girl to talk instead. Besides, he was curious about Izaya's past.

"Oh, he didn't tell you? The Duke...I mean, the Earl, was my clan leader. But I married into Yellow Scarves clan so I'm here. But I'm originally from the Orihara clan," Saki smiled and answered without hesitation.

"...Wait, Orihara clan? Duke? Earl?" Shizuo had noticed that Izaya's title kept swapping and this girl seemed to be answering honestly. He decided to pressure a bit further. "Which is it anyway? Duke or Earl?"

"My~ I knew Izaya-san enjoyed secrets but I didn't realize he'd keep it from his partner," she giggled as she placed a hand to cover her lips in a dainty manner, covering her secretive smile as her eyes twinkled merrily. "Perhaps I shouldn't tell you."

"Come on, tell me. I won't say anything to Izaya," Shizuo tapped his foot impatiently. "It's getting rather annoying not knowing a single thing about him anyway."

"Well, perhaps we can trade some information. You tell me some things I want to know and I'll tell you what you want to know," Saki smiled slyly, the innocence fading fast from the vampire's expression.

"...You really must be from the same family as he is, you two are similar," Shizuo grumbled to himself, huffing in irritation.

"Actually, Izaya-san and I are not family. I was part of his political tactics, one of them included me seducing the Shogun of the Yellow Scarves," Saki blushed as she touched the side of her warm cheek. "That didn't quite work out according to Izaya-san's plans when I truly fell in love with Kida-kun. Eventually I betrayed Izaya-san and didn't follow through with his plans, leaving the clan for Kida-kun. But Izaya-san let me go with his blessings. Kida doesn't believe it still but he really did. And when Izaya-san's plan with Saika clans fell apart he…"

"Wait, Saika too?" Shizuo couldn't help but interrupt before Saki moved on.

"Yes, though that was before my involvement so I do not know the details. I believe it had to do with Mika-chan and the leader of the Sonohara family." Saki daintily sipped her wine glass. It was the color of blood and Shizuo was reminded again that this wasn't a normal human girl but another vampire. Never in his dreams did he think that he would be socializing with a vampire so civilly, but nevertheless Shizuo listened carefully.

"It was the bravest act I've ever seen." Saki lowered her eyes solemnly, her smile disappearing. "To save his clan, he gave up his title, you see, even though he was born and raised to lead. But he did it to save his people."

Shizuo fell silent along with Saki. He didn't really understand everything that she was saying, all this about politics and saving the clan but he understood very clearly that Izaya had given it all up for sake of something greater and chivalrous. Shizuo knew that there was something more than meets the eye with Izaya time to time but hearing this made him believe that Izaya could in fact see more than a bigger picture. He was someone who could make a personal sacrifice for a greater cause.

The blond hunter bit his fingernail a bit as he tried to let all that sink in. And to know that that same vampire was the one who was tortured for fifteen years on top of all that, the heaviness in his stomach did not lighten with such information.

"So, now it's your turn." The vampire smiled again with that perfect smile of a beautiful porcelain doll. "I've told you what you wanted to know, so you need to tell me what I want to know."

"Ahh...right." Shizuo took a deep breath and let it out slowly, "So, what is it that you wanted to know again?"

"Your  _real_  relationship with Izaya-san," the girl's eyes twinkled again like fireflies. "Come now, you can't fool me."

Shizuo closed his eyes and sighed, having had blind faith in hoping that the girl had something else to ask besides that. "I told you, it's business. I protect him and he lets me kill vampires."

"Hnn~" Saki's eyes narrowed as the smile bloomed on her face as her finger lightly touched her lips. "Is that all?"

"Positive. Totally." Shizuo waved at her. "I'm a holy man, you know."

"Well, I think you-" Saki's eyes dangerously narrowed as her grin widened to say something more but they were fortunately interrupted as Izaya called over from the entrance of the hallway.

"Shizu-chan~ we're done here."

"Oh good. Well then," Shizuo got up abruptly. "Some other time, Miss."

"Oh no fair, that's cheating, Shizuo-san~" Saki got up and pouted, calling him already on a first name bases, but she didn't stop him from leaving. Instead they both walked over to where Izaya and Kida stood. And Shizuo's eyes shot up when several vampires carried a large cart that held his golden cross.

"My cross!" Shizuo quickly ran over to grab his cross, sighing in relief. "Thank God."

"They located it for me when I described it to Kida. His entire squad flew over the valley to find it. Luckily half of it was poking out of the snow. They had to use the rope to pull it out since the vampires were too afraid to touch it." Izaya explained, prompting Shizuo to walk over to the nervous men who carried the cart and thanked them shortly before strapping it back on and bowed in gratitude to Kida as well.

"How did it go?" Shizuo asked Izaya, wondering what they had talked about.

"Excellent. We don't have to go visit the village up in the mountains anymore. Kida agreed not to molest them. In fact, the Yellow Scarves will be moving their territory further away."

Shizuo blinked in surprise. How did Izaya manage all that? He did that with the Sonohoara's Saika clan too. "How…?"

"Don't worry about it, it's too long to talk about. I'll explain later. We should go, however."

Shizuo looked up at the sky. It was already dark but it was true. This place wouldn't welcome a hunter to stay the night just like how the Saika were nervous of having him at their place. He nodded.

As Izaya was saying his goodbyes to Kida, Saki walked over and pulled Shizuo to the side, whispering in his ear. "Please take care of him," and she winked, sending him off with a smile.

"Like I said, we're not…" Shizuo started but faltered as Saki continued to smile. The hunter sighed. He wasn't getting through, it seemed as the meaning of her words held an unsure standing with him. Instead of condemning himself to more confusion, he nodded, "Yeah well. Of course I'll protect him."

"That's all I ask," Saki said before she ran over to hug Izaya and say her goodbyes, despite the disgusted look Kida gave them as she did so.

Shizuo wasn't sure exactly what had happened still but he understood just a bit more about Izaya's past and that was good he should still go check on the village in the mountains, he decided to trust Izaya's judgement and go back home. They were still few days away from their headquarters.

The two followed the stars in the night sky to leave the Yellow Scarves' territory until they finally found a road. Still they were several hours away from the nearest town and the forest was very thick. Izaya noted that Shizuo was walking slower and slower behind him.

"Shizu-chan, should we just camp for the night?" Izaya turned to ask. He wanted to take Shizuo to a doctor soon but perhaps having him rest was a better option.

"We are only an hour or two away from the village right? We'll try to get there in time...speaking of which," Shizuo hesitated. "You didn't actually tell the church secret did you?"

"Of course not. I bluffed throughout the whole thing." Izaya rolled his eyes but Shizuo was still tiny bit worried. However, even with his inkling of doubt, he should learn to trust his partner so he decided not to ask further.

"How did you get him to agree not to hurt the villagers anyway?" Shizuo asked a different question instead, still curious.

"There are ways," Izaya smiled mysteriously as he paused so Shizuo could catch up. "Your vampire is pretty resourceful, you know." Shizuo couldn't help but feel drawn to that confident smile and those crimson eyes that sparkled in the dark as Izaya claimed himself as 'his' vampire. Izaya was still the same old Izaya all right. Shizuo had felt distant seeing him with other familiar vampires but he almost felt better to see him back to the Izaya that he was familiar with.

"Hey, I just realized something." Shizuo spoke up suddenly as he grabbed Izaya's both shoulders with his hands. "You didn't get hurt during this mission at all right?"

"Erm...yeah I guess not." Izaya thought it over.

Shizuo fiercely hugged Izaya so suddenly, the vampire was caught off guard.

"I'm glad...I'm very glad. You didn't get hurt in this mission, finally," the blond was in tears, his eyes shining brightly. Izaya felt a bit awkward and embarrassed inwardly as he realized that Shizuo must have felt very guilty about it as it was true that in all their previous missions, Izaya had a history of getting hurt badly. In fact, he had almost died each time. Strangely, Izaya didn't think much about it. He had almost died so often, at this point it wasn't even something to shrug over.

"It's okay, Shizu-chan. I'm alright." Izaya patted the hunter's back to console him. Then he teasingly laughed, "You know, the mission isn't over until we get back home."

Home. Again Izaya realized that he considered the church their 'home' now. And this time, Izaya actually verbalized it into word instead of thinking it in his head.

"Y-Yeah...I know," Shizuo mumbled as he held onto Izaya, still not letting him go.

Then suddenly, Shizuo's grip loosened and slipped down, his entire body falling to his knees in a sudden loss of balance. When his knees hit the ground, he would have tumbled over onto his face had Izaya not grabbed him.

"Shizu-chan? Shizu-chan?!" Izaya shouted in panic as the hunter fell abruptly. "Shizu-chan?! Hey, are you okay?!" Izaya panicked as he struggled to lift up the heavy armored hunter. Eventually, he carefully laid him on the bed of grass as he quickly patted the unconscious blond. It was as if the relief had given in to the tension and the pain he was holding in for all this time.

Izaya quickly unbuckled the trench coat and yanked on the armor plate. It was tied tightly but he was finally able to loosen it enough to pull off the breastplate. When Izaya lifted up the shirt, he cringed. Shizuo's ribs were bruised purple and he had no idea if they were broken or not as he then he pulled on the arm plates and pushed back the sleeves to check his arms and sure enough, the skin was bruised an ugly black. Though it was under the moonlight, with Izaya's vampiric eyesight, he could tell that Shizuo was seriously hurt and possibly bleeding internally.

"You fool! You stupid protozoan fool!" Izaya cursed as he grabbed his satchel that Vorona had provided him and dug out his healing books. He had learned some simple spells but the difficult spells required more practice, only the main problem was, the church only offered books on holy spells, which Izaya couldn't use. And of course the library had zero books on vampire spells.

"Shit, shit! What herbs do I use on bruises and internal bleeding?! Is there anything?!" Izaya cursed frantically as he flipped through the books. It explained how to stop the bleeding if the skin was cut and how to stitch all the way to how to mend broken bones as well as some herbal remedies and antidotes for common poison but there wasn't any specific instructions on internal bleeding.

"What do I do?! Dammit...I don't know how to heal a human!" Izaya bit his lower lip as he panicked further. Was this it? Should he fly Shizuo to the nearest village? Would Shizuo live through the flight?! Should he try bleeding Shizuo so the blood wouldn't clot and kill him? Was it better for him to rest and not move him or take him quickly to a doctor? Was there anything he could do at all?!

Izaya felt sick in the stomach and wanted to vomit. He was so useless! They had learned how to fight together and they had trained together but they had not prepared at all at the idea that Shizuo would be hurt to this extent. It had never crossed their mind as Shizuo was nearly indestructible.

Izaya nearly fainted as his mind turned white and blood drained from his head. As he held onto Shizuo, helpless, he tried to go over in his mind what he could do in this situation when he had no medical field practice.

Going over all his possibilities, Izaya decided on one possibility out of his desperation.

Using all his strength, he let out a high-pitched sound that was beyond human hearing.

Thousands and thousands of bats suddenly covered the sky as the forest was teaming with furry black animals, screeching their silent calls. Izaya and Shizuo were hidden from the moonlight as the bats carried the vampire's message across the land.

_"Help me, Dotachin!"_

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note: Already at Kadota arc! Things are getting more and more interesting i hope?! (At least Izaya didn't get hurt this time but... Shizuo did instead pfff... what a reversal? XD) Thank you for all the awesome reviews, they really help me work faster XD I hope i can at least squeeze in one more chapter for October 31... I hope I got the energy!


	17. Chapter 17

 

_"Shiiizu-chan~"_

_Shizuo blinked his eyes in the darkness. Where was he? He tried to think back but he couldn't remember where he exactly was. The last thing he remembered was…what was it?_

_"Shiiizu-chaan~"_

_Shizuo turned to face the smiling vampire whose those beautiful ruby eyes that glowed belonged to._

_Before he spoke any further, Shizuo interrupted him. "You're not Izaya."_

_Izaya's eyes widened slightly before he grinned back, the smile not reaching his cold, calculating eyes._

_"How did you figure it out so fast, Heiwajima-san? I can call you that, can't I?"_

_"...Not sure." Shizuo admitted, his throat feeling dry as if he was thirsty for something. Speaking of which, his entire body felt warm and his head was ringing. "I just knew you weren't him."_

_Izaya brushed it off with a wave of his hand. "No matter, Heiwajima-san. Perhaps it is better this way."_

_"What do you want?" Shizuo asked as he sat down on a chair that suddenly appeared to be there for him. He couldn't figure out where he was no matter how hard he tried. "Is this a dream?"_

_"How acute of you. You seem to have a keen sense for things. I can see why Orihara-san has taken a liking to you. Although...I feel that he didn't have much of a choice in the matter." The boy still camouflaged as Izaya sat across from him. Wait, why did Shizuo think of him as a 'boy'?_

_"So it's a dream." Shizuo scowled. Was this real? Did this guy somehow invade his dream? Was that even possible?_

_"In a manner of speaking. It's a method of communication. I was hoping we could chat." Izaya smiled back innocently and that unnerved the hunter._

_"Cut it with the fake imagery then and show yourself. I don't like to chat with someone hiding behind a mask." Shizuo ground his teeth. The hunter figured that this must be a type of a vampire magic. "I already don't appreciate that you've tried to trick me into thinking you're Izaya."_

_"Since it's a dream, I had to take the form of someone you knew. I couldn't just walk in." Izaya smiled dejectedly and Shizuo did_ not _like that facial expression on this impostor. Shizuo knew he was weak to Izaya's smiles, and the fact that this vampire was using them against him only further displeased him. "I had hoped that you would tell me without realizing that this was a dream, but I guess there's no helping it."_

_"I said cut the whole bullshit and get to the point. What do you want?" If Shizuo had the choice, he would have punched that face. But knowing that this was a dream, it was pointless. Besides, Shizuo wasn't sure if he had his supernatural power in this kind of situation._

_"It's quite simple. I'm already getting what I want." Izaya's smile grew dangerously wide, sending a shiver down Shizuo's spine._

_"What...are you talking about? What are you already getting?!" Shizuo jumped up from his chair to grab at him._

_"Don't you realize? I've already invaded your mind." Izaya closed his eyes and continued to give the hunter his nonchalant smile. "I'm already taking in your memories."_

_"GET OUT!" Shizuo panicked as he tried to punch Izaya in the face but he stopped before the fist could connect. This vampire didn't try to avoid him at all!_

_"What's wrong? Go ahead and punch him. He is just a vampire, nothing more. And it's only a dream." Izaya spoke of himself in third person. Shizuo was furious as his vision turned red with rage but he couldn't punch that face. He just could not!_

_"You know, we've been following you since your first mission with him, when you almost burned Orihara-san alive. Did you really think there were only two vampires present back then? Not to mention, you thought none of us would realize that two of our elite Blue Squares members did not return home?" Izaya continued. "Haven't you felt our presence at all? We've known about Orihara-san's escape since day one. Ah, but I guess none of it really matters. What truly matters is-"_

_"I SAID! GET! OUT!" Shizuo screamed as he swung really hard._

_But Izaya disappeared into the shadows like smoke._

_"I wonder how long you'll stay with him. He may need you but...you don't need him, do you? Heiwajima-san?"_

_The voice started to fade away as Shizuo thought he heard the voice say in the distance._

_"So why not join me?"_

 

* * *

 

 

Shizuo gasped as he sat up coughing, the air suddenly rushing into the wrong windpipe. He groaned as his entire body trembled in pain. He felt sore everywhere, his ribs stabbing him as if he had been somebody's punching bag for several hours.

"Ah! Iza-Iza! Shizu-Shizu is awake!" Shizuo heard a female voice nearby.

Iza...Iza?

Shizu- _SHIZU_?!I

What kind of pet name was _that_?! She better not be calling HIM SHIZU-SHIZU or he was gonna kill-!

"Shizu-chan!"

Speaking of not cute pet names, Izaya ran over to check up on Shizuo by calling him those said nicknames Shizuo didn't particularly like.

"How are you feeling?"

Shizuo rubbed his sore shoulders. Taking in his surroundings, the hunter realized he was in someone's log cabin and he was on a hay mattress. He was properly bandaged...rather, they looked professionally bandaged as if Shinra had done it himself.

"Sore," Shizuo shrugged in reply as his gaze met with Izaya's concerned eyes. Now this was his Izaya, the real one…the one with warm liquid eyes that looked as if they'd melt.

...Real one? Was there even a fake one?

Shizuo tried to think back to why he had thought there was even an impostor Izaya but his dream was already fading from his mind.

"Well, I'm glad you woke up. Here, Erika made this. She said you should drink it." Izaya picked up a bowl of what looked like a herbal muck. There was no other way to describe the brown gooey substance that wasn't liquid or solid. And did something in there just _twitch?!_

"Uhh...no thanks. I think I'm fine actually." Shizuo backed away and tried to get up.

"Oh no you don't! You're not going anywhere and you're drinking this!" Izaya huffed as he sat closer, in front of the Erika girl who smiled widely.

That was when Shizuo noticed that 'Erika' had vampire fangs.

"Friend of yours?" Shizuo pointed at the girl with sparkly eyes that looked as if she had found her new favorite pair of puppies to play with. The hunter felt very nervous at those glittering eyes that stared at him in hunger as she breathed heavily.

"Ah, yes. Shizu-chan, this is Karisawa Erika . She's a healer...and a vampire."

"Hi, hi! Nice to meet you! Oh man, I _coooould_ not _beeeelieve_ it when Iza-Iza called for us! I'm happy to see that Iza-Iza only relies on no one else other then Dotachin in emergencies like this, however to also find out that Iza-Iza would signal the emergency call not for himself, not for another vampire but for a _human_! And a hunter of Nebula Organization at that! I can't wait to-ummfpfhhh!"

Izaya's face turned white as he covered Erika's mouth before she spewed some more nonsense.

"Us? Dotachin? Emergencies?" Shizuo could not even understand 3% of what she said. But… Izaya had obviously trusted this girl enough to tell her that he was with a hunter, and asked for her help believing that she would heal a vampire hunter. That was something.

"She's saying that she was surprised that proud Izaya would use the emergency beacon specifically given to a man of his station to save a human hunter, basically."

Shizuo looked up to see where the deep voice was coming from. A young man turned the corner and waved with a friendly smile. "Hey, I'm Kadota Kyohei. Don't mind Karisawa. She tends to get excited easily."

"Haaa…" Shizuo nodded slowly in half acknowledgement and greeting. The vampire named Kadota waved at him to not bother getting up for a proper greeting when Shizuo tried to sit up again. He was wearing an unadorned brown smock for travel wear but Shizuo could tell it wasn't a cheap commoner's clothing, just more utilitarian. It looked plain and yet it looked thick and well made to keep the wearer warm in the winter cold.

"This is Yumasaki Walker," Kadota pointed at the blond vampire who poked his head out and waved at Shizuo. "And Saburo Togusa is outside checking the coach." Kadota finished the rounds of introduction as he thumbed the back of the door.

"Togusa-san is obsessed with his coach, you know~" Walker piped up as he stepped forward, the curiosity for meeting the hunter getting better of him. He too was wearing something more of simple travelling clothes of a merchant class, a blue tunic on top which looked sturdy, nothing fancy like the elite vampires or military-like. Shizuo wondered if this group were merchants or travellers amongst the vampires. "He always makes sure the horses are properly groomed and watered before coming in. He wouldn't miss it for the world to meet a hunter from Nebula Organization who was able to uphold a sliding mountain with his bare hands!"

Izaya cringed at the fact that he couldn't cover both their mouths. Already Erika and pulled his hands down to chirp, "So was it true?! That you got those bruises because you were holding up an avalanche?!"

"Did you meet a beautiful witch at a young age by chance, Heiwajima-san? If you did, can you guide me to her?" Walker took a step forward, his slanted eyes slightly opening while his grin remained like that of a Cheshire cat.

"No, no, it must be his true love for Iza-Iza! Is it because you two are contractors?!"

Shizuo and Izaya spluttered and tried to deny it however Erika and Walker were in their own worlds, arguing viciously.

"No, no, Karisawa-san! It must be because of a magical spell or a curse placed on him when he was a child! Oh what kind of beautiful fairy she must have been with what beauty! Imagine being surrounded by fairies and witches and angels! It should explain the supernatural powers that he-"

"No, it's got to be the power of love! Iza-Iza even used his bat signal that he wouldn't even use when he was captured by-"

"But the potential power of the magical curse placed is-!"

"No, it's got to be because of-!"

"ENOUGH YOU GUYS!" Kadota shouted above the two and grabbed the squabbling kids by their collars.

"Sorry Heiwajima-kun. I'll let you rest, you must be tired. I'll take these goons with me." Kadota apologized in their behalf as he dragged the two vampires, still wanting to talk to Shizuo about their theories and whatnot. Izaya looked exhausted as he sat on the chair next to the bed and groaned, his face in his hands.

"You have some excitable...friends." Shizuo decided as he leaned back.

"Don't mention it. Please." Izaya sighed as he laid his head near Shizuo's hand, his arms folded in front of him. "Well, they aren't exactly friends, I suppose, but something like that."

"...Were they your subordinates then?"

Izaya glanced up at Shizuo, startled.

"I'm not stupid and I have fully functional ears. I see and hear those vampires call you duke or earl and what not. I figured that we'll run into someone you know who works or worked directly under you, eventually." Shizuo scowled, not liking that Izaya could have thought of him as an imbecile.

"...Yeah a long time ago, they were." Izaya admitted, closing his eyes with a soft smile that the hunter rarely got the chance to see. Shizuo thought that Izaya looked like he was remembering something very pleasant. The blond hunter's hand itched to pet his head affectionately and tell him it would be okay, however he didn't, knowing full well how much Izaya didn't like being treated like a pet.

"You look tired." Shizuo noted as he watched Izaya lay his head on the bedside and rest.

"I didn't sleep..."

"You didn't sleep?"

"Mmm…"

Shizuo wanted to ask more, such as how long was he passed out and for how long Izaya had not slept but he gave up. Izaya looked tired and the hunter could see the dark circles under his eyes. Even though he had a lot of unanswered questions, he decided to lay back down so both of them could get some rest.

 

* * *

 

 

Drifting between sleep and consciousness, Shizuo blinked open his eyes to look up at the unfamiliar ceiling. He tried to sit up but he didn't seem to have enough strength to move an inch. It was as if he was paralyzed and that suddenly shocked him into wakefulness. He could feel tingling sensations in his limbs so he knew he wasn't truly numb, just unable to move. Panting harshly, he struggled to move but, he couldn't lift a finger, his muscles all locked up. He had this happen to him before, of course, however it was scary now with the uncertainty if it was because his body was too relaxed from sleep or he was truly paralyzed.

The blond looked around his surroundings to notice that it must be nighttime. There were several candles in the large log cabin and a warm fireplace still lit and blazing. There were people huddled together, sharing blankets to sleep on the floor due to the lack of extra beds. Shizuo's eyes widened as his eyes focused to notice that next to the fireplace was Izaya, sleeping against the wall. That part wasn't really surprising however, the fact that he was leaning his head against the shoulder of the vampire that called himself 'Kadota.' In fact, they were sharing a large blanket together, huddled close for warmth and that hit Shizuo's stomach like a hard punch.

The hunter was suddenly consumed with unreasonable anger. He didn't know why he was furious but he was as his heart started to beat faster. He groaned, struggling again to try to shift and sit up.

The sound woke up the raven, his ears perking up. "Shizu-chan?" Izaya rose his exhausted head, his eyes still heavy with sleep. When he noticed Shizuo struggling, he quickly got up, pushing off the covers and ran over, accidentally waking up his partner who was sharing his blanket. Kadota was groggy as he walked over alongside Izaya.

"Shizu-chan? Hey, don't get up. Lay back down." Izaya placed a hand on Shizuo's chest and held his other hand with his free one. Strangely, the previous anger dissolved as Izaya came back to his side and Shizuo felt a bit guilty for being so selfish. Izaya too probably needed his rest however the fact that the raven headed vampire ran to his side made the hunter immensely happier.

"I can't...move my arms and legs." Shizuo frowned as he tried again.

"Shh...it's fine. You're fine...I think the medicine is just making you relaxed and sleepy. It's suppose to do that, I think, so that you heal. So go back to sleep."

Shizuo looked up at Izaya's concerned face and sighed, still feeling drowsy. He wanted to tell him to stay next to him but sleep took over and he was unable to speak his words.

 

* * *

 

 

 

When Shizuo woke up again, he still felt awful. He had a splitting headache and his ribs were sore. However, he did notice that he could at least move his limbs now.

"Ah! Shizu-Shizu is awake!"

Shizuo groaned inwardly at that nickname while the female vampire flew over instantly to check on him. The girl placed the back of her cool hand gently on Shizuo's forehead to check his temperature.

"How long...was I out?" Shizuo groaned and asked. He didn't see Izaya anywhere but it looked like it was daytime? Shizuo could tell that there was a dim light source outside, behind the curtains. Since the sunlight burned the vampires, the curtains covered the windows thickly.

"Mmmm…. about four days now?"

"Four days?!" Shizuo practically jumped out of the bed, sharply pausing to groan in pain. Erika placed a hand behind his back and on his chest to help ease him back down.

"Easy there Mister Hunter sir~ You were out the first two days and Iza-Iza was so frantic, ahaha. But you've passed the danger zone. I've been mixing something that helps you sleep with your medicine. You need to heal first, Shizu-Shizu!"

Shizuo groaned louder and this time not because of the pain.

"Can you cut that out? Shizu-Shizu sounds like I'm a kid."

“Ah, but you are one. Technically. I’m far older than you even if I’m the youngest of the bunch.” Erika _tsked_  as her pointed fingers made a motion like a pendulum.

"You are? How old are you exactly?" Shizuo frowned.

"Ahem! I'll be turning 125 soon!" Erika smirked happily. Shizuo's jaw dropped.

"One hundred and WHAT?!"

"Hey, don't look at me like I'm an old croon please. It's rude to ask a lady's age anyway." Erika pouted.

"Ah, sorry it's just….Izaya's been telling me he's three thousand years old and the day after that he'd change it to two hundred or something like that, so I could never tell his real age….I just didn't really think anyone's really _that_ old. You aren't pulling my leg, are ya?"

"Rude~ Shizu-Shizu is so insensitive to women~" Erika made a pouty duck face and Shizuo couldn't help but laugh. This vampire girl made him relax despite that she was technically his enemy.

"Thanks. My ribs hurt from laughing but ahahaha…" Shizuo chuckled a bit as he grabbed as his rib with his hand. Now he had slightly more energy to move his limbs, they weren't frozen like before.

"Then no laughing. You should drink more of this though." Erika again gave him a bowl of...greenish brown muck. Shizuo sighed and took the bowl, cringing as he sipped. He did his best to drink it without puking.

"So tell me...exactly how old is Izaya? I guess he's older than 125?" Shizuo asked, curious.

"Well, if Iza-Iza didn't tell you, not sure if I should." Erika winked slyly as she watched Shizuo drink her herbal medicine.

"..." Shizuo frowned but didn't answer as he finished the bowl and cringed at the after taste. He passed the bowl back to the female vampire. This girl was more intelligent than most of the nuns he had known of back at the church. Then again, that vampire named Saki was very perceptive too…was it because they all hung out with Izaya so much?

"Where is he anyway? He and...your friends?" Shizuo asked as he wiped his mouth.

"They're out on guard. Actually that's mostly Yumasaki's job and Tougusa-chi is grooming his horses again…I think Iza-Iza and Dotachin are just out to keep Yumasaki company. Iza-Iza was pretty much by your bedside for a week so...Dotachin finally dragged him out for a walk. You just happened to wake up that one time Iza-Iza wasn't here."

"In the daylight?" Shizuo frowned. Didn't it burn their skin? Shizuo didn't bother asking about the guard duty since he figured that they were on the watch so no humans stumbled and found them. It was strange to hide from his own kind while being helped by vampires.

"Sun is setting. It's not so bad. Sun won't melt us. Besides, I think Dotachin wanted to talk to Iza-Iza privately about some stuff." Erika smiled as she cleaned the bowl and was grinding another root that smelled awful. Shizuo did not look forward to eating that…but more than anything, he was curious about what it was that this Kadota guy wanted to talk to Izaya about. Days has passed and knowing Izaya, he had a feeling that the raven was avoiding answering everything as usual, except that the time must have been against him. There were only so many ways to avoid direct questions after all. However, asking this girl about that was probably futile since she probably didn't know the answer.

"So then what can you tell me?"

"Hmm?" Erika didn't bother looking up as she continued to add more herbs to grind into the bowl on the table next to the bed.

"About Izaya." Shizuo added sheepishly.

That made the female vampire look up with cat-like grin which made Shizuo instantly regret asking. However, this girl clearly knew Izaya, and Shizuo wondered if he could learn a bit more about him just like how Saki told him a tidbit of information too. The female vampire had already said she won't tell about Izaya's age and the hunter knew he was fishing for information but maybe she could tell him something, _anything._

"Heeeeh~ Shizu-Shizu really loves Iza-Iza huh?" That grin got bigger. Unnervingly bigger.

"It's not like that. It's just…he's never telling me anything about his past and…will you stop smiling like that?" Shizuo growled as the vampire named Erika continued to grin wider and wider and her lips looked as if they'd split her face in half. That won't look pretty at all, nope.

"Since you insist~I won't mind telling you a teeny tiny bit about our lord." Erika giggled as he went back to grinding up some more unappetizing muck for the hunter.

"Well, you see. I didn't always study medicine." Erika started softly as she started telling her story. "We were all very young vampires, you know. I guess like for you humans, around the age of 8 or 10? We were still not fully grown adults. We were all retainers to Iza-Iza...our lord heir apparent back then. Well, we were born from a lesser noblemen class, except for Dotachin but that's another story. We were born and raised to become Orihara Izaya's future retainers. Although we were servants, Iza-Iza treated us like friends since rarely a kid of his age and status visits the duchy. One day, Togusa-chi wanted to explore the forbidden forest behind the palace because a large rainbow ended there after the rain. He was obsessed with this singing fairy story that one of the gramps had told him and he wanted to find her. So me, Yumasaki, Dotachin and Iza-Iza along with Togusa-chi, all went to the forest in search of this mysterious fairy we had no idea what it looked like or how to catch. But Togusa-chi was certain he'd know when he saw it since it was supposed to be the most beautiful fairy with a voice of a Siren."

"Mmm...but you know, the further we chased the rainbow, it grew further and further away. And since it was after a rain, the roads were swampy and wet. I accidentally slipped and fell into a ravine. It wasn't too deep but it was narrow and steep. There was no way that I could climb out. So Dotachin decided that they would all link their hands and tried to grab me. When I grabbed Dotachin's hand though, the weight was too much and he fell because Togusa-chi couldn't hold him."

Erika smiled a bit at that as her hands continued to be busy. "That was when Dotachin twisted his ankle. I remember crying because I was scared and I was so upset that I hurt my friend when he was just trying to save me. I was so angry at myself too because I felt so useless. By now there were two of us down at the gorge and we all knew we'd be in serious trouble for going into the forbidden forest without permission. That was when Iza-Iza came up with a plan."

"A plan?" Shizuo asked mostly to show that he was indeed listening intently.

"Yes, a plan. You see, we were young so Yumasaki was panicking that he should run for an adult and I was dramatically crying that we were all going to die, and Togusa-chi was blaming himself that it was all his fault and Dotachin said that he was fine, that he could crawl back up, and then Iza-Iza came up with that plan."

"What did he do?"

Erika giggled. "Without even consulting with us, he decided that he needed to act fast. We didn't know how serious Dotachin's injury was, for all we knew his ankle could be broken or he could never walk again so he needed medical attention. Although we were all too scared to get in trouble, Iza-Iza understood how dire the situation was growing with every minute Dotachin wasn't receiving any medical treatment. He decided that he needed to prioritize getting an adult's help first over getting into trouble. So he jumped into the ravine."

"He did _what_?" Shizuo blurted out, breaking Erika's story.

"Can you believe it?" Erika burst out laughing in memory. "Iza-Iza. He jumped into the ravine! Ahahaha…we were all so shocked, even Dotachin didn't have the time to get angry at the reckless behavior. However we didn't have time to get angry at him. What made us scream in panic and fear was when he used the emergency beacon to signal the adults."

"What is that? You mentioned it before I think."

"It's a signal only the high lords could use. If you release it into the air, the bats will carry messages all across the countryside to gather all the nobles. It's used usually to rally your warlords. Basically it's a war cry. Granted I've heard it was used in certain situation such as to escape from assassination or in need of backup during battle with the enemy."

"Oh shit. You guys were in serious trouble weren't you?" Shizuo couldn't help but half chuckle and half shake his head.

“Oh, majorly.” Erika burst out laughing as well. “All the adults gathered, thinking that they were all heading to war with our neighbors for an offensive remark or something. It was peacetime back then so all the warlords were pretty anxious for a small war here and there, quite unlike now. Can you imagine? They all came rushing with mighty hopes, only to find the heir along with runts of no-status stuck in some dirty mud hole and they had to pull them out of it. Boy, were they ever disappointed ahahaha…! Dotachin did get his medical attention immediately, after a good scolding of course. And Iza-Iza lied that he wanted to chase the rainbow so that Togusa-chi wouldn’t receive lashes.”

"Lashes?" Shizuo raised his eyebrows.

"Oh yes. Going into the forbidden forest and putting your future lord in danger? At least thirty whip lashings. If not fifty." Erika nodded solemnly. Shizuo hissed under his breath. That sounded way too cruel to a kid.

"However, Iza-Iza took the full blame. His father scolded him and he was locked in his room for a week but that was it. We were all very grateful. We were raised to be loyal of course, now we would leap through fires of hell for him." Erika finally stood up as she poured water into the herbal medicine she had created. "And that is the story of how I decided to learn medicine. Now drink this and you can get some rest again. Granted humans are a bit different from vampires but luckily for you, I studied both."

"Do I have to drink this?" Shizuo sighed. He had a few more questions too and he wanted to stay awake to see Izaya. Although, truth be told, seeing him right after hearing that story could be a bit awkward.

"Yes you do. You got your story so now rest. You need your sleep." Erika gave a no-nonsense approach and Shizuo sighed as he drank the dark purple liquid.

It went down smoothly despite being bitter. As his head hit the pillow, he could feel the sleep overpower his senses. Even with the drowsiness that threatened to cut off his consciousness, he couldn't help but wonder to himself, if that emergency beacon was supposed to summon all his nobles, why did only they show up? Perhaps all the nobles came and left while Shizuo was out cold? Did Izaya get in trouble again for using it so recklessly and only to save a human and a vampire hunter at that? However, they were questions that were left unanswered as Shizuo fell into yet another deep sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note: Happy Birthday to Shizuo! I had to make an update on his birthdaaay~


	18. Chapter 18

 

  
  
  


The hunter blinked open his eyes again, panting roughly. He was covered in sweat, and the dream he just had was starting to fade away. Another dream that felt so real but already he couldn’t remember what it was about. It felt so important while he was dreaming it but he couldn’t retain it at all. Something about a vampire….something about Izaya,Like he was going down the memory lane with someone who was invading his mind to peek into something very personal and private. 

Shizuo tried to shake it off. Whatever it was, that ominous feeling was gone and he awoke to a room lit with candles and a warm fireplace again. It was the same log cabin and Izaya was sleeping by the bed with his arms as his pillow. The hunter smiled softly to himself as he tried to reach out and pet his head but he couldn’t move again. Once more, whatever drug that Erika had given him had relaxed his muscles to the point he couldn’t lift a finger.

This time Shizuo didn’t panic but he was very frustrated because he couldn’t touch his Izaya even though he was within his reach. His gentle breathing and his long ears and lashes, Shizuo missed holding him and feeling their shared warmth. 

Just as Shizuo struggled to try again to reach for Izaya, he saw a light source move closer to them and push away the makeshift curtain that was around Shizuo’s bed. It was Kadota holding a candle; the vampire did not notice that Shizuo was awake, granted the blond’s eyes were barely open. 

Kadota let out a sigh almost fondly with a smile before he blew out his candle and lowered it on the small nightstand next to the bed. Then with his strong arms, he picked up Izaya to carry him away. 

Again, Shizuo burst with unexplainable anger but his eyes widened when Izaya stirred and whispered softly, “Shizu-chan?” Suddenly his breath was caught in his throat as he saw Izaya mumble for him in his sleep. It was like his heart was swelling with pride and happiness that while half awake, Izaya still sought for him first..

“No, it’s Kadota. Sleep, Izaya.” Kadota gently smiled, seemingly unperturbed by the mistake. In fact, the dark haired vampire even leaned forward to give a kiss on Izaya’s forehead. That was UNCALLED FOR!!! Shizuo couldn’t move but he could feel his body about to explode with fury. It wasn’t jealousy, surely not! But that was his Izaya! And it was ‘HIM’ who always kissed his forehead! 

However, Izaya just mumbled softly and leaned his head closer to Kadota’s shoulder while falling back asleep. Shizuo watched as Kadota gathered the blankets around them and held Izaya in his lap as they promptly went to sleep. The hunter, on the other hand, could not go back to sleep anymore. If only the drug wore off just a bit, he would jump out of this bed and…!

And what? Shizuo couldn’t even think anymore or about what he wanted to do but he was pissed off! Even if it was a friendly gesture, he didn’t care! He didn’t like it. And as soon as he could get up, he would make sure that Izaya stayed by his side the entire time and…!

Even though Shizuo was seething in anger his head was thinking all sorts of thoughts every second, and his body grew weary. Once more before he knew it, he fell asleep again, dreaming about talking to a vampire he didn’t know and would forget the next day. 

  
  


* * *

 

 

By the seventh day, Erika finally stopped giving Shizuo that disgusting tasting medicine which kept him immobilized. She announced that he was finally well enough for travelling. The news was a great relief to Izaya in more ways than one since Kadota had been corning him and drilling him with questions: Why did he disappear so suddenly and how did he end up working with a hunter? Why does he plan to go back to the church with him, wasn’t that dangerous? How did they meet and can he really trust this hunter? He couldn’t lie since Kadota would figure it out eventually so all he could do was answer a few and do his best to avoid his questions or change the subject. Kadota knew Izaya well enough to know all of the tricks. It was very difficult for Izaya since he could do his best to avoid Kadota for a few hours, but a week was a challenge even for the raven.

Today as well, even while they were getting ready to travel, Kadota had managed to trap him in a corner.Izaya was placing the blankets into the coach when Kadota came with wine bottle and lightly pressed it against his cheek to catch Izaya’s attention.

“It’s your favorite vintage. You should at least drink some.”

Izaya sighed at the concerned voice. It was indeed his favorite, a long time ago. He could even remember the taste in his head and the decadent scent but he knew that as soon as he uncorked that wine, it would taste like pig’s piss. 

“No thanks.” Izaya waved it off as he placed the extra blankets inside the back of the coach.

“Izaya.” Kadota spoke his name grimly like a parent scolding his child. “I haven’t seen you drink anything and it’s been seven days.”

“Yeah well, we can go on for weeks without drinking, you know that.” Izaya shrugged but Kadota frowned. “But it’s not healthy and very unlike you. What is it? Did that hunter forbid you to drink human blood too now? How are you even surviving then?”

“It’s not like that…” Izaya groaned inwardly. Now how was he to avoid this question? 

“Look, I get that you have to work with him for some unknown reason of yours. For all I know, it’s some damned secret mission that Mikado sent you on, spying on the church and all but dammit, Izaya! I think it’s a suicidal mission. You should quit while you can, I don’t care what that Ryuugamine kid wants.”

Izaya just sighed again. By staying silent, Kadota had come up with a good explanation and Izaya had been doing his best to sort of stick to it without actually answering yes or no. 

“It’s not quite like that but I can’t talk about it. That’s all I’m going to say. I’m just not hungry.” Izaya gently pushed away the wine bottle. “Now if you’ll excuse me, we still gotta pack for the travel.” And the raven hurriedly ran back inside with the others. Kadota ran his fingers back through his hair and sighed. If Izaya was playing like this, he had other plans. 

Just as Kadota was thinking of him, he then saw the exact man he wanted. Erika was squealing about Shizu-Shizu and Iza-Iza for something when the disgruntled hunter practically stormed out of the cabin, carrying a large trunk to shove into the carriage. Kadota also placed the wine bottle into the carriage and held the lid open for the hunter as he tried to stuff everything inside. 

“How are you feeling?” Kadota tried to small talk casually. They didn’t really get to know this hunter as he was mostly asleep in bed. At least it didn’t seem like he was hostile and had planned to kill them even though he was well enough to move around. Kadota did think it would be safer if they had kept the hunter drugged while they took them back near the church grounds but it was obvious that Izaya trusted him so he too decided to take a chance at trusting the blond hunter. 

“Still sore but your friend did a good job patching me up.” Shizuo grunted, not the one to be social with someone he didn’t really know. Sure Kadota seemed to be good friends with Izaya and he looked like a trustworthy guy, he just rubbed him wrong was all. Especially when he got too close with Izaya, it just didn’t sit right with Shizuo.  
  
“Well Erika studied hard. She was supposed to be Izaya’s personal doctor had things not gone south.” 

“....” Shizuo grew quiet. Again, this about Izaya being demoted. He couldn’t help but be curious. What exactly happened? Saki explained a bit but…

“Say…” Shizuo spoke up as Kadota also simultaneously said, “you know…”

“Ah...you first.” Shizuo conceded. Maybe if he listened to whatever Kadota wanted, he might be willing to share a bit about Izaya’s past. 

“Well, this might come off blunt but it’s getting serious so I’d like to talk to you without any offense.”

Already Shizuo felt a bit apprehensive. He wasn’t the type to hold down his anger that often.

“Yeah? What’s it about?”

“It’s about Izaya. He hasn’t been drinking blood at all.” Kadota looked directly into Shizuo’s eyes as if he was accusing him. “Are you responsible for that?”   


“Ah….” Shizuo blinked and groaned inwardly. He had totally forgotten about it. It had been a week and of course since he was asleep, he couldn’t feed Izaya. Not only that, Izaya probably couldn’t hold the runed dagger long enough to prick his skin and they both knew his teeth won’t be able to pierce him. Even if he could, it wasn’t like Izaya could drink his blood in front of everyone around them. He swore to himself inwardly for forgetting such a basic necessary.

“How is he?” Shizuo asked instead and clearly Kadota didn’t like his questions answered with a question. He was polite enough to let it go and answer the hunter. “He’s not well. Haven’t you noticed he’s getting paler? Granted I suppose you yourself are sick and I can’t fault you for not being keen.” 

That stabbed deeply into Shizuo’s heart. He did care! He cared about Izaya more than anyone else! It made Shizuo angry again to be told by this man that he didn’t seem to be caring about Izaya’s health at all.

“I’ll tell him to drink then.” Shizuo growled unhappily as he pushed in the trunk. It wasn’t exactly the answer Kadota was seeking since he presumed it was due to Shizuo’s ‘order’ that Izaya wasn’t drinking blood but he let it go. Perhaps it wasn’t what he was thinking and Izaya really wasn’t hungry. By the time Shizuo left Kadota, he had completely forgotten that he didn’t get to ask him about Izaya’s past, having missed his chance.

Once everyone had packed, they set off to the church. Shizuo watched as the driver of the coach, Togusa, cast a spell that made the log cabin invisible again. 

“It’s an emergency shelter. We have them placed at certain points of the road to hide vampires from pursuing humans.” Erika had explained after she made him promise not to write it in his report to the humans. It made a lot of sense to Shizuo since there had been cases where they were chasing a vampire who suddenly would disappear without a trace. Of course, most humans just believed that they flew so high that they couldn’t see them anymore and gave up after that. It was an amazing finding and it was unfortunate that Shizuo believed in not breaking his oath. Torn between his promise and his dedication to his duty, eventually Shizuo decided not to speak of it for now. Perhaps if he had to, he might, but for now he would keep his silence. 

Erika and Walker rode on their horses while Togusa drove the carriage. Shizuo sat in the carriage across from Izaya and Kadota, to his disappointment. He stayed quiet about his displeasure and looked out the window instead so he didn’t have to see Kadota and Izaya sit next to each other. Izaya kept the conversation going light, obviously avoiding certain questions which would lead to Kadota once again questioning about where he had been and why he was with the hunter. Mostly Izaya kept questioning Kadota about the vampire politics, trying to catch up with all the things he had missed out without making it obvious that he had been out of touch for more than a decade. 

Shizuo did glance at Izaya now and then. Perhaps it was his imagination influenced by what Kadota said but although he was all smiles, Izaya certain did look paler, thinner…

It made Shizuo’s stomach sick that he had not realized it. He had known that Izaya probably wasn’t sleeping much but he should have known he wasn’t also eating as well. To think that he had been so proud that at least in this mission Izaya had not gotten hurt, Shizuo once again realized that he was naive. 

When the coach stopped to rest the horses, everyone got up to stretch their legs. Shizuo purposefully started to walk far away, saying he needed to take a piss. He waited until eventually Izaya would come to find him since the vampire said he could smell his blood from miles away. Sure enough, Izaya did.

“There you are. We’re ready to leave, are you done yet?” Izaya inquired as he stepped out of the trees. He noticed that Shizuo had his arms crossed and was leaning against a tree as if he was waiting for him. “Something...wrong?” 

“Yeah.” Shizuo pulled out his runed dagger. Izaya’s eyes widened and dashed forward to stop him.

“You idiot! Don’t cut yourself here and now! They can smell you and…!”

“So what? You’re feeding, no big deal.”

“Yes it is! T-they’d know I’m feeding on you and that’s…! Embarrassing…!” Izaya finally said the words, spluttering as his ears turned red.

“Why? I’m just feeding you.” Shizuo growled, not liking this. “What’s so embarrassing about eating?”

“You stupid, dumbass, protozoan! Ugh…! Don’t you humans get basic education on vampires?! No, I’m sure you guys do, it’s just that you’re STUPID.” Izaya hissed angrily as his wings bristled up. Shizuo too gritted his teeth. Why this ungrateful vampire, here he was being concerned for his well-being and he was calling him ‘stupid!’

“Well I’m stupid because you don’t tell me why. So I’m going to feed you whether you want to or not!” With that Shizuo held up his dagger to slice open his palm.   
  
“Shizu! NO!” Izaya in panic grabbed at the runed dagger’s handle to stop him. To Shizuo’s astonishment, Izaya grimaced as his hand burned from the holy dagger, holding back his scream in pain. Quickly, he snapped his dagger away.

“What’s wrong with you?! Now you’re hurt! Let me see that!” Shizuo quickly tried to check on Izaya’s burned hand but the vampire swiped it away.

“Izaya!!” Shizuo shouted in frustration as his heart squeezed tightly watching Izaya flinch in pain. “What the hell?!”

“No, _you_ listen! When I say no, I mean it!” Izaya rubbed at his burned hand and glared back. Shizuo sighed.  
  
“Okay, I got it. You’re embarrassed. At least explain to this idiot why you would rather get yourself hurt than be fed and let’s try to think of another way? I don’t like hurting you and I’m sorry.”

Izaya’s eyes softened as he watched Shizuo look clearly distressed that he had hurt him and apologize. The vampire grumbled a bit as he rubbed his burnt palm. 

“Like I said it’s…embarrassing even to explain it. I can’t believe you haven’t even noticed yet.” 

“Noticed what?” Shizuo shook his head exasperated.

“W...why do you think your stupid priests have you… you know…. make me drink blood by….well...you made that stupid rule where I can’t drink blood from you directly when we met.” Izaya kept switching his sentence to try to explain it without saying it directly. 

Shizuo blinked. Oh right….at first Izaya wasn’t allowed to drink from his finger directly because…

The blond hunter could feel his cheeks burn warmly. 

“Y-you mean _that_?”

“Yes….that.” Izaya couldn’t face Shizuo at all. It wasn’t like he minded. He liked drinking blood directly obviously because it felt good. It was like having an intercourse and it was quite intimate. It had become such a natural thing for them vampires and they did practice orgy as well. But Izaya was comfortable with only a select few. Drinking blood so openly and boldly wasn’t Izaya’s thing as he felt like it was the same as engaging in salacious intercourse in front of his friends and subordinates. Some obviously did it to make a statement and Izaya wasn’t advert to doing so if necessary, but this wasn’t the place or time.

“T-they would be able to smell your blood once you cut yourself...and they’d know I’d be...feeding on you. It’s sort of like...I guess equivalent to you catching your friend having… a lewd intercourse in a room next door. Some don’t mind doing it in public but...I prefer it to be more private.” Izaya shifted his eyes as he spoke as bluntly as he could even as his cheeks too blushed red. Izaya was a noble raised to be proper so although he may enjoy it in private, he found it rather obscene to do so in public. It was one of those things Shinra had noticed about Izaya’s upbringing but clearly it was lost to Shizuo...until now.

Shizuo understood since he did know that whenever Izaya sucked from him directly, he felt intense pleasure. He hadn’t really connected the two and two together. True, he won’t really want to show to his brothers his feeding time with Izaya either, now that he thought about it.  
  
“So is it okay if they can’t smell the blood?” Shizuo asked softly. Izaya looked up confused. “If you cut yourself, they’d be able to smell it you know…”

“What if…I cut here?” Shizuo opened his mouth and pointed at his tongue with his finger. Izaya’s eyes widened as his entire face seemed to turn red.

“Well...I guess if you’re….quick to erm...close your mouth….”

“Then that settles it.” Shizuo smirked as he gathered Izaya to him with one arm, pressing their bodies close. He could feel Izaya’s heart pounding against their chest and he knew that his heart too was racing against his. 

With a quick swipe, Shizuo cut his tongue with his runed dagger and he brought them to Izaya’s hesitantly opened mouth, diving his bleeding tongue deeply. 

“Mmmnggh…” Izaya moaned as Shizuo cradled the back of his head, keeping it in place as they deepened the kiss. The blood was delicious as always but it was more then that. He could feel their hearts drumming against each other’s chest in harmony, both fully knowing each other’s unspoken little secret. With Shizuo’s adrenaline rising, Izaya could taste the sweetness of the blood mixing with the unique taste of the hunter’s saliva. Their tongue meshed together in an intricate dance, each sucking each other off even though it should only be the vampire feeding. Shizuo too wanted him, the one sided feeding turning into a mutually passionate kiss. 

“Mmnngh…. nnnghh… mmmfff… Shiz...u….” Izaya groaned as Shizuo relentlessly kissed back. This wasn’t a normal feeding. The vampire gasped for breath as he started to lose himself. Shizuo pressed him hard against the tree trunk, both his hands cupping his vampire’s head as he deepened the kiss even further. Their knees interlocked and the vampire shuddered as he thought he felt Shizuo’s thigh rub between his legs. It was starting to feel more than good. The pleasure of feeding had started to become intoxicating and the vampire was feeling drunk with escatsy. 

“Haaah…. haaah…! Sh… Shizu…” Izaya gasped again for breath but Shizuo didn’t let go. His mouth latched right back on when the vampire pulled away for a quick breath. It was to make sure that the scent of his blood won’t fill the air, right? They didn’t want to get caught by Izaya’s friends….so they shouldn’t move their lips away...right? Those were Shizuo’s excuses as he pushed the vampire up against the tree again, inciting a moan that sent a shiver down to his groin. 

However already there was a shadow amongst the trees unknown to the preoccupied duo. Worried that his previous liege was taking too long to come back, a certain vampire had started to follow a faint scent. By the time he had gotten close, he had smelled a sharp scent of blood in the air before it quickly disappeared. Curious, he had moved closer and closer to that direction. 

“Nnnngh… Shi… Shizu… I… mnnngh….!” Izaya didn’t exactly struggle but he couldn’t help but want to pull away briefly at least to breath. He was panting roughly as if his heart couldn’t race fast enough with Shizuo’s kissing skills. It shouldn’t be a kiss. This was suppose to be feeding! However, Shizuo was far stronger, like a hard rock crushing the vampire under him, an immobile force that Izaya couldn’t help but feel his own body grow just as hard with each suckling. He was trapped between two hard places but the vampire didn’t seem to mind, in fact he welcomed it. He wanted this hunter to thrust his rock hard body against him. He wanted this hunter to suck his tongue and explore his mouth. He wanted those fingers to hold him in place and command over his body. He wanted this hunter to…

“S-stop!” Suddenly Izaya pushed Shizuo away, taking in a huge gasp of air. Bewildered, the hunter paused and took a step back, their lips wet with each other’s saliva.

“Are you okay? Did I hurt you?” Shizuo wiped his lips and quickly checked him over, concerned.

“I… I’m fine. It’s just….” Izaya flushed. It was getting out of hand. Between their exchange, Izaya had sudden realization that he had ‘wanted’ this hunter. Not as food but something more carnal. And that frightened him. 

“I… I just had my share. I’m fine.” Izaya struggled to stand straight as he too wiped his mouth. “Is your tongue… okay?”

Shizuo nodded, not speaking anymore. Despite his own racing heart, he still remembered that this was feeding and that it had happened because Izaya didn’t want the scent of blood in the air. Izaya felt even more shame in knowing that Shizuo had not forgotten about the original objective of the kiss. 

“W…we should go back before we’re missed.” Izaya stuttered as he swallowed hard. His chest had tightened up and he wasn’t quite sure he knew why. 

Shizuo just solemnly nodded, giving a hand in case Izaya wanted to take it. The vampire just shook his head and started to walk back toward the carriage.

The vampire who had witnessed it all quietly stepped away without a sound. 

  
  


 


	19. Chapter 19

 

* * *

The carriage was a bit awkward for Shizuo. It was just right after sunset, perfect time for the vampires to travel. Togusa guy was driving the team of horses while Walker and Erika rode on a horse next to them. It was a bit bumpy but comfortable as Shizuo massaged his bandaged arm. He was still recovering from all the bruises he received, but mostly he kept silent because his tongue was still healing from the cut. Even though he healed faster than others, he didn't have vampire magic or anything.

Luckily Izaya did the talking as per usual. Though again he was mostly trading information. Sitting next to Kadota and across from Shizuo, the young nimble vampire was too close to his right hand man for the priest's comfort. Oblivious to Shizuo's inner thoughts, Izaya asked a few questions regarding other clansmen but Kadota's answers were too careful, not willing to slip any information to their enemy, a hunter, in the same carriage. All the clansmen were doing fine. So and so had married to others, and how many were pregnant. It seemed that it was a big deal to vampires; pregnancies. It was rare for vampires to marry and even more rarer to produce an heir, so such news were considered a spotlight, except Shizuo had no idea who these people were and what possible significance they might have to further Izaya's political career.

Izaya's political career. That was another thing that was confusing to Shizuo. Izaya was an earl. Which actually wasn't a high title. In fact, it was one of a low holding. But Erika and others had once called him a duke. And Erika hinted that by joining this Mikado guy, Izaya had lost that title. But had saved his men. Sitting here and listening to who married who and how many babies were born, which were only two within the last decade or so that Izaya was imprisoned, did not help Shizuo at all to get to know Izaya.

"So, how was your life at the church?" Kadota threw out the question so casually, that Shizuo almost missed it. Then he blinked as it dawned on him.

Izaya must have told them nothing. How had this man avoided this question while Shizuo was asleep for a week, the young priest did not know. Shizuo was still, looking out the window as he pretended not to care about their conversation. The outside was dark and it offered no view in the night but he did so anyway as he wasn't the creative sort to think of a better pretense.

"Comfortable," Izaya shrugged, answering it as shortly as possible. Shizuo almost snorted. Almost. It was probably beyond what Kadota could ever imagine.

"So how is…" Izaya asked again, trying to switch the subject back to more news of his men. But Kadota knew that he was running out of questions to ask, trapped in the carriage in their journey. There was time. Plenty of time still left until they reached the church.

"I heard you are a priest in training."

The question was thrown out again. This time, Shizuo didn't realize it was for him until there was only silence that followed. He slowly turned to meet the man who was probably Izaya's right-hand. He had solid and honest eyes. They were stern, unyielding, and very loyal. The kind of man that Shizuo got along with the most at the church. If they had met under different circumstances, they could have been friends, possibly.

"I am." He said simply. Closing his mouth shut as soon as he spoke and not answering further. That was a mistake.

"Tell me about it? Is it hard? Rewarding?"

It could be taken as a friendly way to start the conversation, but Shizuo's eyes narrowed.

"I can't tell that to you." And again, Shizuo closed his mouth fast. He stopped himself from adding, ' _Not to an enemy_.' But they both heard the unspoken phrase.

"Now, now, Dotachin. You know Shizu-chan can't tell a vampire about Nebula Hunters training lessons." Izaya chided, jumping in to save Shizuo. That was when the blond realized his first mistake. Instead of answering the questions, he should have been asking the questions to make Kadota talk, just like Izaya had been doing with his long strings of 'how are so and so doing?'. But Kadota had known Izaya for a long time. Much longer than Shizuo and he saw past all the tricks Izaya had up his sleeves. And knew how to counter them.

"Of course, how rude of me. Guess we aren't quite friends just yet." Kadota smiled at the young hunter with an arch of his brow. Shizuo's eyes narrowed even further. Though this man had an honest face, he still was a vampire, better yet, a noblemen of the court. He knew how to play politics and how to throw insults underhandedly it seemed.

"Aww, is Dotachin feeling lonely? Or jealous?" Izaya's eyes were twinkling but Shizuo could see that the raven was doing his best to change the subject away from the priest, even jab a bit teasingly at Kadota to have his right-hand man focus on him. There was a pang of jealousy again that stabbed at Shizuo's heart when Izaya smiled at Kadota like that, wanting to try to get him to see him and only him, even if he understood now that this was just how Izaya manipulated others around him.

However, Kadota seemed immune as he turned to focus his attacks on Shizuo again. "Not at all. I just wish to be friends beyond this truce." And he slightly bowed genuinely. "You have protected my liege and I'm grateful."

Shizuo was a bit baffled. He didn't see where this was going, though Izaya clearly did, as he tried to interrupt. But Kadota was still faster.

"I'm sure the dungeons at the church are more comfortable than our own."

That startled Shizuo so much that he reacted with a jolt and his eyes widened. His heart was beating faster. Not of anger, but mostly fear as his mind's first thought was: 'does he know that Izaya was thrown into the dungeons for about 15 years?'

No. Kadota couldn't have known. Izaya would have never told him. If Kadota knew, Shizuo was pretty sure he would have run to Izaya's side no matter what to rescue him. A small church protected by about two dozen hunters wasn't hard to decimate with a large enough team of vampires.

He was probing, Shizuo realized. With these carefully veiled insulting compliments, he was probing Shizuo with his honest reactions rather than the blond's carefully chosen words. Because Kadota too knew what type of a man Shizuo was. An honest one.

"Dotachin." Izaya's voice was flat.

"Are you threatening to throw me into your dungeon?" Shizuo was forced to ask. He knew that the question was for him and he didn't want to look like a fool where he needed constant protection from Izaya. He wanted to make it clear that it was 'him' who was protecting the earl. His earl. Kadota was testing him and he could feel it. Of course he would, he was loyal. And he needed to make sure that he could trust Shizuo with his earl at the church. Things were slowly starting to click in Shizuo's once dull mind. Izaya had said that he would do all the talking but this was one fight Shizuo wanted to win on his own. He would show that he could protect Izaya at all costs.

Kadota shook his head amicably. "No. Just merely stating the fact that Izaya had said it was comfortable at the church. I can not imagine the church not throwing him into a dungeon for a few months at least since he is who he is." 'A few months' was a huge understatement.

'It was most of his life at the church,' Shizuo had thought. It was just few months ago, not even half a year ago since Izaya was released. Clearly Kadota did not know.

"You were so young back then. I can't imagine a child being able to convince a council of church members..." Kadota asked now, turning to Izaya. "So how did you leave the dungeon?"

Slowly Kadota was approaching the forbidden topic. It looked as if Izaya didn't even tell him about their blood contract or his years of imprisonment, the torture or his escape. Was it a taboo? Shizuo wondered. Did he not trust him? This man was clearly extremely loyal to Izaya, and it was clear that Izaya had trusted him too. So why did Izaya not revealed everything?

"How did I leave the dungeon? Shouldn't you be asking, 'why'?" Izaya leaned back a bit, at ease with himself.

Now that question seemed to confuse Kadota as much as it did to Shizuo.

"I told you I had a mission." Izaya shrugged dismissively. "I'm still fulfilling it. Everything's part of it and I can't talk about it. It's ' _His'_ orders."

And that was that. Izaya again had simply answered without answering and effectively ended the conversation.

Then the carriage came to an abrupt stop.

 

* * *

 

 

When Togusa stopped to water the horses, Shizuo stepped out saying he needed some fresh air.

 _'His_ ' orders. That was Izaya's words. Judging from the way Kadota reacted, it wasn't Shizuo's orders but someone else's. Someone who was above them.

...probably this Ryuugamine Mikado guy. The leader of the Dollars.

Shizuo frowned. Izaya said he would do all the talking and that most of them would be lies. He had told Shizuo not to react to anything he said, even the most horrifying ones because again, Izaya said he would be lying or telling half-truths. He told him to believe in him.

However it was getting harder and harder each time. Izaya had pretended to give out the church's secrets to the enemy vampires. Each mission, he approached the leader and spoke to them directly only to come back and tell Shizuo that he had resolved the problem, but Shizuo couldn't figure out what Izaya had given them for all these vampires to fold their original plan and go along with Izaya's. Now Izaya had told Kadota that he could be an agent of the vampire king and that he had deliberately put himself in this position. That he had deliberately let himself be caught and be tortured for years underground. All for this mission.

…

Shizuo sighed. He had to believe in Izaya. Izaya was tortured for years, no one would endure such extreme pain all for the sake of some mission right?

_"It was the bravest act I've ever seen." Saki had said. "To save his clan, he gave up his title, you see, even though he was born and raised to lead. But he did it to save his people."_

The young priest frowned. Would Izaya allow himself to be tortured for years just to save his people?

No. There was just no way out of that dungeon. Shizuo knew. He saw him. Every month. Ragged, worn, and exhausted. Not enough blood or strength to even grow a pair of wings or a set of fangs to bite. Unable to even lean forward or try to coax and charm a man for a key. And it had been going on for years.

No. It wasn't a question of 'why'. Shizuo carefully thought it over in the fresh night air. He was right, he should trust Izaya. The vampire was indeed twisting the words to fit his situation. And he had saved Shizuo the embarrassment of telling Kadota that he couldn't protect Izaya all these years save for the last handful of months.

Kadota was right too. He probably wasn't worthy of protecting Izaya. Izaya was probably better off if he could run off with him. But Izaya couldn't. Izaya needed his blood due to the binding contract.

And….Shizuo needed him.

Shizuo couldn't quite explain why or how but he needed Izaya to be with him.

So now that he could think clearly, he realized exactly how smart Izaya was, playing them like lute, making Kadota think that he was getting what he wanted. Shizuo's reactions were pure and honest after all, worried that Izaya actually might be a double agent. Even though the conversation was over and Kadota did not learn a single sliver of information about Izaya's stay at the church, he made it seem as if it was his own choice that he had stayed at the church. Izaya had ended it without breaking Shizuo's promise and making Kadota seem like he was indeed a double agent so he shouldn't worry, let him deal with it.

When Shizuo came back, instead of getting inside the carriage, he climbed up to sit next to the driver, Togusa, much to everyone's surprise. Shizuo feigned that he was getting motion sick and he prefered sitting at the top. Even though he didn't particularly enjoy the idea of Kadota and Izaya alone together, he didn't want to place himself any further in a vulnerable position where Kadota could continue to ask penetrating questions so Izaya could counter-argue again and again pointlessly.

He now sort of understood why Izaya had preferred that Shizuo sit outside while he spoke to Kida alone. The young priest wasn't good at hiding his emotions, his reactions still too honest to lie properly.

Besides, Shizuo had another plan, instead of sitting in that carriage and be interrogated with elaborate puzzling conversations that gave him headaches. That teasing little vampire would never divulge about his past to him and this opportunity to get to know it was too good of a chance to miss out.

Once the carriage started to move, there was an odd silence among the trio. That was alright, Shizuo expected that since he was there. But he could feel that they were dying to get to know him or ask questions.

"So, what's it like to be a vampire?" Shizuo asked. He learned one thing from Izaya. If he wanted to keep his mouth shut while his tongue healed, he better let them do all the talking.

That question seemed to surprise Togusa, as he laughed. "That's like asking what's it like to be a human then? I wouldn't know since I've always been a vampire."

Shizuo knew that too and this was a lot easier with Kadota's men who didn't have the similar brilliant mind that Izaya had.

Shizuo shrugged exaggeratedly. "I'm sure it's more fun. You guys live longer."

"It's usually boring." Walker chimed in. "We can't associate ourselves with witches or fairies. Did you know that fairies can communicate like bee hives? Fascinating creatures. And witches. Oh man, if only there were more books on them."

"Yumachi~ it's forbidden to collect or talk about those books." Erika chimed in too lightly, but Shizuo thought he heard a small warning. As if to tell Walker that he couldn't talk freely about his likes in front of a possible enemy. Especially about something so incriminating in their culture.

Shizuo had no idea that vampires weren't allowed to be associated with witches or fairies to be honest. But then again, human too weren't allowed to do that either. They weren't to make friends with vampires, witches and fairies and other magical creatures. It was wrong, dangerous and most of all, it was what God disapproved. Which was why it was quite amazing how the good doctor Shinra openly spoke sometimes of his love for a certain fairy in the forest he met while young. But perhaps it was because of the extreme openness that no one took him seriously, just accepted it as joking quirk.

"Technically we aren't supposed to be associating ourselves with humans either, even less with a hunter at that." Togusa carefully added. "You are our food after all." It seemed Togusa was walking into dangerous territory, again like Kadota, asking a question he probably shouldn't be asking.

It was as if they were all willing to wade into dangerous waters, carefully, to make sure that this hunter truly could be trusted with their liege.

If Shizuo was half a year younger, he might have gotten angry or upset. But being with Izaya had opened his eyes slowly. These men were loyal. And it was their loyalty that struck Shizuo enough that he remained calm despite being called 'food.'

"Being a hunter is overrated actually." Shizuo spoke instead, approaching the subject that they clearly wanted to tackle. "We are told to kill vampires, taught how to kill them and yet we don't know anything about you guys or your society and culture. To us you guys are our predators." He hoped that these men weren't as keen as Kadota and couldn't smell the faint blood on his tongue of a semi-closed wound. Or even knew that a bitten tongue probably meant feeding time.

He had a captive audience and he knew it. They were tense as the hunter revealed the obvious, that yes, he was a hunter. Right here. And his main objective should be to kill them all.

"So… why haven't you tried to kill us?" Togusa asked again, the more abrasive one of the trio. It seemed Erika was the most subtle and Togusa was the more direct. Shizuo hadn't gotten to know Walker guy just yet… just that he was eccentric, talking about unusual creatures just like Shinra. Shizuo knew he wasn't good at playing mind games like Izaya but these were Izaya's men. He wanted to get along with them, vampires or not.

"Four vampires against one? Are you that easy to kill?" Shizuo smiled back with amusement. "You are his men right? I'm not as dishonorable as to kill Izaya's men just because I'm told to do so."

That contradiction still clearly seemed to confuse the trio and Shizuo had to admit, it confused him too. He himself couldn't figure out any logical argument as to why. But he could speak from his heart so he did.

"Don't worry, I won't hurt you. Even if I wasn't a hunter, I wouldn't hurt Izaya's friends."

Friends. That word also seem to struck the trio. Erika had explained that they were under Izaya even though he had never treated them as servants but as friends. Shizuo knew that meant a great deal to these guys.

"And why...would you not hurt our liege who is a vampire?" Erika asked carefully. She seemed to be dying to know, full of curiosity. That was the question that they all seemed to want to hear the answer to.

Shizuo smiled at them honestly as if the question was pretty silly and obvious. "Because he's my friend too."

And with that, Shizuo knew he had cemented a connection of friendship without lying. Although if they had asked whys and hows, he probably couldn't have answered them. He just knew from his heart that he cared for Izaya. And that he wouldn't hurt him.

The man had suffered enough, as Shinra had once told him. And Shizuo felt responsible for that. It wasn't just guilt anymore. The more he got to know Izaya, the more the feeling of wanting to be his friend, wanting to be by his side and protecting him grew stronger genuinely day by day.

The atmosphere instantly relaxed when Shizuo declared that he considered Izaya a friend. Even though that was such a direct contradiction, the fact that a hunter was willing to consider a vampire his friend, it was a living proof that he had not threatened them with hostility so far. Shizuo had approached them as a friend and this hunter offered friendship. As ludicrous as that sounded, it seemed that they believed him. Besides, unlike Izaya's men who were vampires, Shizuo wasn't, which meant that he didn't have to deal with the hierarchy of Izaya's dubious rank of being an earl who was once a duke.

After they relaxed, Shizuo moved on to his next objective. He didn't ask direct questions about Izaya's childhood. He didn't have to. Just by getting to know these men, Shizuo had a good idea what kind of life Izaya had growing up with them. He asked how Togusa acquired this carriage, which lead to Walker and Erika retelling an exciting story about how Togusa fell in love with this specific carriage, much to the driver's embarrassment. It apparently involved a singing fairy. Then that led to Walker and Erika derailing the conversation about witches and fairies. Walker clearly loved fairies and forbidden magic. Erika ventured more into witches and also forbidden magic dealing with curses and healing. Even Shizuo knew that digging up graves for undead couldn't be that accepted especially now that the young hunter was seeing how civil and sophisticated this culture of vampires were.

Shizuo was taught that vampires were vulgar creatures, things that grew aroused while fed. Barbarians who ate humans for pleasure and fun. But he realized that the humans must look like barbarians to them instead. The vampires had a vast rich culture of etiquette and music as well as poetry. Apparently Walker was a published poet, as Erika teased him. Togusa even confirmed that he liked some of Walker's writings, much to the latter's embarassment. Again his poems curtailed forbidden love between vampires and fairies amongst other things taboo and that apparently were secretly popular with the ladies of the court.

Shizuo too knew that he should bring some to the table and talked a bit about his life growing up. He told them how once he and Kasuka respectively won the hunter's training tournament of the year. That really caught their attention as they thought a hunter would never reveal the secrets of their training. Although Shizuo clearly took out anything that could be detrimental such as sharing fighting techniques, he still entertained them with how he got injured on the shoulder but continued to fight against his rival, Horada. How the cheating boy kicked sand into his eyes. He could hear Walker growl lowly how he'd want to burn him to death. It was a good story, as good as Shizuo remembered it too. Against all odds and despite his injury, he was able to kick Horada down and won first place.

What he didn't tell of course was how the audience did not cheer when he won. The entire village and the church didn't approve that the first place went to the orphan no one loved or wanted to win. The orphan who had made the blood contract with the vampire in the basement.

Still, it was an exciting story, and Kasuka won 2nd place, and the trio seemed satisfied, reliving it through Shizuo's words. And in some way, there was a small portion of history that was missing in their lives about the liege. Though of course, they had no idea that Izaya was still in the dungeon during then.

While the four were getting along spectacularly, Shizuo couldn't help but wonder how Izaya was faring with Kadota down there. Were they back to talking about strings of clansmen's marriages and children? Or were they skirting around the issue of why Izaya was still with the hunter and going back to the church instead of returning home? Knowing Izaya, Shizuo had no doubt that he would be able to evade all the questions while only tossing a few handful of conjectures on maybes, and perhaps.

However, the inside of the carriage was quiet as Izaya and Kadota now sat across from each other. The moonlight shined just a bit inside the carriage but Izaya's face remained hidden in the dark.

"Izaya…" Kadota spoke, trying to break the silence.

"Silence."

That was a direct order, a cold command with a chilling voice. Kadota sighed as he looked up.

Those ruby eyes glowed in the dark with vivid anger.

"If you still consider me your liege, you will not speak until I tell you to do so."

Despite the fact that Kadota was higher in rank in Mikado's court, he still did not consider himself above Izaya. Though their relationship as master and servant was broken a long time ago when they joined the Dollars, it didn't mean anything to Kadota. His actions said that he still considered Izaya his lord and that was clear.

So Kadota said nothing, quiet in the carriage feeling the full towering anger of his Lord Orihara Izaya. The side that Shizuo had never seen before. The side of Orihara Izaya at full command as a vampire lord.

Kadota couldn't even explain himself or try to somehow appease his anger. So he sat obediently. It didn't matter since they both knew why Izaya was so furious. Kadota knew that he had stepped over the line while he knew he could. He knew that this was the side he would never show to Shizuo so he had pressed for answers when he could. When Izaya was probably most vulnerable. Even if it was with good intentions, he knew he had errored so he obediently remained quiet.

On the other hand, Izaya wasn't particularly angry at Kadota. He knew he had led Shizuo around the nose with good intentions. He also didn't want Kadota to think he would go unpunished after his insolence. That and he didn't feel like even giving a small hint about his past fifteen years of imprisonment.

After all, if any of them found out that Shizuo had let Izaya be tortured for fiteen years, no matter how chummy they got, they would slaughter him. Butcher him like a pig.

Shizuo wouldn't be easy to bring down. But he was honest. Walker knew several forbidden pyre magic spells. Erika looked sweet but she was a physician and knew many secret arts of herbs and witchcraft. Not to mention that she could effectively paralyze Shizuo at any time. Togusa, if given time could call on all the soldiers under him, he himself one of the strongest warriors on horseback and formidable fighter in mid-fight. Then there was Kadota, one of the most brilliant tacticians and swordsmen in the Orihara clan's history. They may not instantly react but would plan, figure out Shizuo's weakness and destroy him swiftly. He wouldn't see it coming. Even if Shizuo could survive the attack, he would be crippled, and Izaya would be left with no one by his side.

And because of that, Izaya used his most commanding authority he had over Kadota to force him to remain silent for the remainder of the journey.

 

* * *

 

 

 

It was about four hours before dawn. Shizuo was still exchanging stories when suddenly, Walker said, "Shh! I hear something."

They all stopped talking and Togusa told the horses to stop. Inside the carriage, Izaya sat up, wondering why they had stopped. Kadota too looked alert at the sudden unscheduled stop.

They heard a low rumbling as the ground shook which sounded similar to an avalanche or an earthquake. But it was neither of those.

Though dark, Shizuo could clearly see them. An army. Similar to Kida's but larger. The largest army he had seen.

They were all on horseback. Despite being able to fly, vampires too used horses as their mount, saving their wings for air fight if needed. Vampires were better at gliding than at flapping around like birds so flying from horses had better advantages anyway. There were other reasons why vampires also used horses as their mount but that was besides the point.

All the vampires were on horseback. Shizuo couldn't even see the end of the line of vampires. There was at least a few thousand as if they were going out for war.

Shizuo's heart stopped as he touched his golden cross behind him. He knew that even he couldn't fight this many even if he wasn't injured. There were many questions going through his mind. Were they here for Izaya as friends or foes? Even if they were Izaya's friends, would they accept him, a Nebula hunter, as easily as these guys seemed to have?

Then there was a sound of horns as the line of soldiers stopped moving, the banner of the white tiger held up high. The vampires shouted, "All hail Lord Chikage!" and banged their breastplates. Shizuo heard Togusa curse under his breath. They weren't Izaya's friends then.

"Please tell me that's the result of Izaya's bat signal?" Shizuo whispered to Togusa. He shook his head and spoke darkly, "the signal would only send for us, no one else."

"They can't be followed?" Shizuo asked again with a tense voice. Togusa shook his head. "It won't be possible."

This probably wasn't the right time but Shizuo had been curious for awhile so he decided to chance it and asked, "...can those bats...perhaps send signal in prison?" Then he hastily added, "in case you know, you guys are trapped."

"No." Togusa shook his head. "The bats must come to us first so we can send them out again with our message. Vampires make their prisons without windows."

There were no windows inside Izaya's prison in the basement of the church. At least that answered that question in Shizuo's mind. Again it only confirmed that Izaya wasn't there out of his choice. If he could have left, he probably would have.

The soldiers started to march and there was nothing they could do as they circled around the carriage completely.

One lone rider on a horse stepped forward. He had an easy smile, clearly the leader.

"Hail Orihara Izaya. That is, if he's willing to come out and greet me."

Erika and Walker stood their ground, completely still. But Shizuo figured that they were already preparing to fight, or die trying to protect their lord. They waited as Kadota swung open the door and held out a hand courteously for Izaya to step out.

Izaya didn't bother with Kadota as he stepped out gracefully and walked towards the front.

"Long time no see, my lord." Chikage bowed on his horseback, clearly insulting as Izaya was standing below him.

"Our Majesty Ryuugamine Mikado has summoned you to appear at his court."

Izaya just smiled as if he was speaking with a friend. "I'm sorry, I haven't been keeping up with the news lately. I don't believe I need to take orders from a non-Dollars."

"Ah but I am." Chikage smiled as he held up his hand. A ring. A signet of black gem with inner circles. "I have decided to submit all of my clans and forces to be under Ryuugamine Mikado and joined the Dollars a few days ago. His First Mission for me is to bring you back to the castle." Then he added with an arrogant smirk. "Though a rather easy task, I decided that I wouldn't underestimate you and brought all my men. Unlike your First Mission of capturing a pair of human boys which you've miserably failed, I plan to succeed in mine."

Shizuo felt his heartbeat suddenly pick up speed at that exchange. Izaya's 'First Mission'. Something about capturning a pair of human boys which he had failed. Probably because he was locked inside the dungeon. Meaning his 'First Mission' probably was the one he was trying to accomplish before the church men had captured him.

The one involving a pair of human boys.

Izaya's expression remained neutral as he spoke, "Tell Our Majesty that I will return to him on my own accord."

Chikage laughed ruefully. "Sorry. Orders are orders. I am to bring you to him and I intend to."

Izaya rolled his eyes. "You can't attack and capture the Baron Kadota. He's a higher rank than you."

Chikage nodded. "Yes, but I can kill that blond over there. He's not a vampire but a hunter, is he not?"

All the eyes turned to Shizuo clearly wearing his hunter's emblemed armor, his clergy trench coat...and his large golden cross behind him. Izaya tsked as if he had not foreseen this. But Shizuo remained still. Izaya always knew that Shizuo looked like a hunter, he always had that in his calculations. So there must be a plan.

"Alright, let him go and I will come willingly." Izaya amended.

Shizuo was shocked.

"What?!" Shizuo got off the the seat and walked over to Izaya and grasped his shoulder. "You can't be serious."

Izaya turned to face him coldly. "I'm going and that's final."

Shizuo hissed in a hurried whisper, "Did you forget that you 'need' me?"

Izaya's ruby eyes were ice cold as he spoke. "I never needed you. Now unhand me brute."

That stung Shizuo. This must be all an act. Again to save him. Shizuo knew this. It was always an act. Izaya had promised him under that tree that he would protect him from everyone, bears, vampires, and church members. And not once had he ever gone back on that word. Shizuo wanted to believe in it.

"I could fight them." Shizuo held onto Izaya's shoulder with one hand while his other hand grabbed his cross. Already the soldiers circling them dragged their weapons out of their sheaths nervously.

"Fight us, and all of the members in Orihara's original clan die."

Shizuo froze at those words and even he could see from his distance that Izaya had stiffened up too. They looked up to see Chikage helplessly shrugging.

"Sorry, I'm just the delivery boy repeating Our Majesty's words. He said that if Orihara Izaya fights us, all of his original clan members would be put to death." He winked. "That's my trump card, sweetheart. See, you always need one just in case your First Mission goes awry like yours did."

Izaya stood still despite the insult being thrown at him. There was a small change inside Izaya and Shizuo felt it.

"Izaya! Take me with you!" Shizuo switched his stand, as his eyes widened. "I promise I could protect you, I don't care where!"

Izaya's face remained turned away from Shizuo as he faced Chikage instead.

"Promise me that the hunter remains unharmed, and I will go with you willingly. He is to stay here and be allowed to return to his church untouched. That is my deal." Izaya spoke again. Shizuo could feel his heart breaking. Izaya didn't trust him enough to take him, was that it? Was the castle of the vampires so traitorous that he didn't think Shizuo could survive it with him?

Chikage burst out laughing as he adjusted his hat. "I don't have to make any unnecessary deals with you. Why should I let the hunter go? He probably killed many of my men. I'm going to enjoy allowing my men to have some fun with him for target practice."

"Because, if you don't deal with me now, then I will fight."

Chikage frowned, almost confused. He knew that Izaya wasn't the type to disregard his own men.

The corners of his lips curled as Izaya explained to the new clan leader of the Dollars. "You see, I'll just ask this man to slaughter you. You're within his reach of the cross. In fact, at least a lot of you. Perhaps I'll die, or perhaps I won't. But if I live, I plan to go tell His Majesty that you have breached your contract and attacked me first, not planning to ever complete his First Mission to begin with. You planned to enjoy this, go back and tell His Majesty that I rebelled so you had to kill me. Once I explain this, His Majesty would probably grant me pardon and all my clansmen would live. And even if none of this goes through…" Here Izaya shrugged dramatically. "You'd be dead. So what does it matter?"

Shizuo could see Chikage shift on his horse, eyeing Shizuo. And that gigantic cross. Like Kida, he looked as if he thought Izaya was bluffing. No sane man would attack him with all these soldiers around, thinking they would survive. But at the same time, Izaya's confidence seemed to deter the man. Or perhaps there was more as Chikage looked down at Shizuo, a bit terrified. Did this man know of Shizuo's reputation? But Shizuo didn't really have that much of a reputation outside of his church. At least, none that he knew of.

"Alright. Deal. Keep your beast in check and he will be unharmed. We ride for the castle now."

"Izaya!" Shizuo shouted, trying to resist when Izaya grabbed his wrist and yanked it off of him. "I said release me. Erika!"

At her name being called, Erika stepped forward and touched the back of Shizuo's neck. Suddenly Shizuo crumpled to the ground, unable to move. It was some type of pressure point. Shizuo's muscles locked and he couldn't move at all, just like how it was when he was sick in bed. He thought it was the medical herbs making him paralyzed but now he knew what it was.

"Sorry, ShizuShizu. It's my lord's command." Erika apologized as she got off the horse and carried him to a nearby tree, away from the road. "It should only last about four hours. By then, we'll be long gone."

"Don't...do this." Shizuo pleaded desperately. "Tell him to take me with you. He will need me."

Even if Shizuo didn't believe in his strength, he knew Izaya would at least need his blood.

"I wish I could but I can't disobey him." Erika shook her head. And while she said so, she discreetly slipped something into Shizuo's hand and wrapped the hand closed, while her back was turned so the soldiers could not see.

Shizuo watched as Izaya stepped back into the carriage with Kadota, not once turning to look back at him. The soldiers kept their circle around the carriage as they marched, a thousand or so men on horseback. He watched helpless and powerlessly as the company left him in the dark and soon the road was once again empty.


	20. Chapter 20

 

* * *

Shizuo watched as the dawn came and the forest started to wake up with sounds of birds chirping while the crickets started to fall asleep. The sun came up slowly in the horizon, the sky turning into a warm shade of orange and then blue, over the hills where the carriage and the soldiers had long disappeared to.

The hunter waited until his muscles stopped locking up. He knew that once he was paralyzed, he couldn't move anyway so he didn't bother struggling. He was only testing if he could move his fingers just to see if it had been four hours yet.

Once he could finally move his fingers, he started to rub them around the object, feeling it to see what it was since he couldn't even look down or bring his hand up to inspect it. It had the shape of a whistle.

It took another half an hour or so for Shizuo's muscles to fully loosen up, the tingling sensation finally draining away. He looked at the whistle in his hand that Erika had given him.

Was this part of Izaya's plans?

Shizuo had a feeling it wasn't. Izaya had intended to leave him behind as soon as he saw the lines of soldiers and knew that he had no option of bringing Shizuo back alive. But somehow he had earned Erika's trust. And Erika had given him this whistle. What it was for, he didn't know but he had a feeling Erika did want him to join them. Perhaps.

At least the whistle would be useful, Shizuo hoped.

He carefully placed it on his lips and whistled.

He heard nothing.

Frowning he blew again. Whistles couldn't break… could they?

He waited after his second try, wondering what to expect. He waited as a cloud moved languidly over the sky and another hour passed by. Each minute, Izaya was getting further and further away from him which made Shizuo feel more and more impatient. But he knew that following trails of horses wouldn't lead him straight to them, as he knew that vampires used magic to hide their tracks from hunters. His only hope was this whistle that Erika had given to him.

So he waited until he thought he heard a flutter. He turned to see a small little bat fly over and settle on his shoulder, nuzzling his head against his neck.

Shizuo watched, a bit astonished as the bat continued to rub himself against him and made a small squeaky sound. He couldn't help but smile at the furry creature.

"Hey there little fella. Are you Erika's pet?"

There was a small squeak which Shizuo didn't understand. Then he thought about it. Erika had mentioned something about bat signals and sending out messages. Maybe that was what it could do?

He dug into his small pack to see if he had anything to write with. Fortunately, he found a small jar of ink and quill, but no paper. He grabbed the largest leaf he could find, then paused.

What should he write? The leaf wasn't large enough to write anything long. He thought about it. 'I can help.' was something he thought about writing but that was too obvious. Clearly he wanted to help, Erika would know that. So instead he wrote, 'Where is the castle?' He rolled up the leaf and used a small string to tie it around the bat's leg. Then he watched as the bat squeaked and flew away.

He couldn't move from where he sat since he had to wait for the bat to return with a message. He wasn't sure how long he could wait since he didn't know if Erika could receive his message discreetly. However to his surprise, the bat arrived back within the hour with a message tied on its leg. It was a small parchment as Shizuo unfolded it to read, 'Who are you? You're not Erika.'

Shizuo stared at it stunned. The message wasn't delivered to Erika then, but to someone else. Perhaps one of Erika's friends? A bit apprehensive, he used the back of the paper to write, 'I'm Erika's friend. I think she is captured. I want to help.' Since the paper was still a bit too small, he could only squeeze that much in before he tied it back onto the bat and sent it off.

Now he waited some more and hoped whoever was receiving this message would believe him. He knew that his armor and clergy outfit would label him a hunter immediately upon the other's arrival and he thought about what he should do. He sighed as he unhooked the golden cross from his back and placed it standing against the tree behind him. He then started to unbuckle his armor. He definitely did not want to look as if he was ready for battle... even if the vampire friend of Erika attacked him by surprise. It was a chance he had to take.

It was high noon by the time Shizuo got tired of waiting and dug into his pack to see if he had anything to eat. Luckily there were still some bread and apples in one of the packs that Walker had thrown down next to him when Erika had taken him to the tree. He had finished the apple and was wondering if he should eat some bread when he heard a flutter again.

The bat was back. He perched on his shoulder and snuggled again. But what caught Shizuo's attention wasn't the snuggling but the fact that the bat held no new messages tied to its foot. At first he thought Erika's 'friend' must have not believed him and didn't bother replying. But why would the bat come back? He slowly got up and looked around. He could see the clouds gather darkly.

No. The bat was the messenger. The bat must have led Erika's friend to him.

Shizuo watched as the clouds covered the sky entirely, as if a storm was approaching. It wasn't quite as dark as the night but it was enough so that where Shizuo stood, the sun didn't touch him.

"How can I trust you, hunter?"

A female voice came from above. Of course Shizuo should expect the vampire to perch on top of a tree somewhere and observe below.

"I suppose it'd be hard." Shizuo replied as honestly as possible. "But Erika and the others have been taken to the castle. I think that Mikado guy's. And…"

Shizuo stopped when he heard the woman chuckle.

"Now I know you're lying. Erika is a member of the Dollars."

"Yes I know that." Shizuo added, trying to locate the source of the voice as he craned his neck upwards.. Of course it would sound weird that the king would arrest his own subject. "But I'm telling you the truth. This Chikage guy... came and said something about it being his First Mission. He captured both Izaya and her, then threatened them that if they didn't go with them, that Mikado guy would kill all his previous clan members. So they had to…"

There was another flutter of wind and sounds of branches breaking. A woman dropped to the ground from above. She was a woman in yellow and glasses, her brown hair tied up in a red bow. Her outfit was prim and proper, high ruffled white collars with a long black cape over her shoulders. Her glare was icy cold.

"You speak of an impossibility."

"Yes I know but…" Shizuo tried but she stopped him by holding up a finger.

"It is so impossible that I shall give you a chance for me to believe you. No one would lie so stupidly."

Shizuo blinked then felt his cheeks heat up at the veiled insult. As expected from vampires and their underhanded comments.

"So perhaps I shall believe you. At least you have the whistle. I have no idea if you stole it from her but I wish to hear the rest of this tale. Please start from the beginning." She crossed her arms and waited expectedly.

Shizuo let out a deep sigh. Where could he start? How could he begin? Izaya didn't even trust his own men to tell the full story. He didn't even know if this woman was Erika's friend or if she could help out. Besides, he sucked at lying.

So, Shizuo decided to explain at least the last few months. He explained that he was a hunter. That was clearly obvious to both of them. He explained that he and Izaya had a contract. She didn't seem to believe him but she didn't interrupt. Shizuo skipped over the fact that Izaya was imprisoned in the basement or that the contract was a blood spell. Instead he hastily explained that he and Izaya were on a mission when he himself got injured. Izaya had called on his friends, Erika was one of them. Then this Chikage guy came and took them away.

Once Shizuo had finished, the woman continued to stare in silence as if she was absorbing the information first. Then, her questioning began, which Shizuo knew it would. He just hoped that the questions wouldn't trap him like they had in his conversation with Kadota.

"You say that you and Lord Izaya," she started and Shizuo noted that she called him a 'lord', "are in a contract. But he has been missing for over a decade."

"Yes…" Shizuo answered carefully.

"How is it that he suddenly appeared in front of you to make this pact?"

"He needed my help with getting protection from the church. In a manner of speaking." Shizuo wasn't sure if that was exactly right but he did protect Izaya. She frowned again.

"But as a hunter, shouldn't you be killing him on sight?"

"Yes, but I also needed him." Shizuo answered carefully.

She nodded. "I see. May I ask what this trade was for?"

Shizuo shrugged. "The church wanted his information on the vampires I think."

"Ah…"

That wasn't a lie either. Though Izaya didn't give that information willingly.

"So he was a double agent. Sent to spy on you but you guys were also desperate for information?" The woman asked.

Shizuo shrugged. "I don't know. I was told to make a pact so I did." Not quite the truth but not quite the lie either. The church wanted him killed when he tried to run but Shizuo had convinced them that he was more important alive.

"How can you prove to me that you're Erika's friend?" She asked yet another direct question.

Shizuo sighed. "I can't. But I will do everything in my power if you can tell me how to get to Mikado's castle. I want to save them."

"Why?" She inquired.

"Because…" Shizuo struggled. "I'm their friend."

"So you became friends with him, fully knowing that he is a double agent and plans to betray you and your church?"

Shizuo let out a deep sigh as the sharp interrogation continued. "I was forced to make a pact with Izaya. True, I didn't trust Izaya at first but now I know him... and I want to protect him."

"How do I know that you're not just a hunter who happened to acquire this whistle and is trying to trick me into taking you there?"

Shizuo blinked. That was a possibility, wasn't it. Shizuo hadn't even thought about that. Here he was, a hunter, with a whistle that should belong to a vampire. He could have killed Erika, tell this tall tale, then get the information on the castle of the largest vampire faction in their history…. summon an army and decimate them all at once.

Shizuo got down on his knees. "Please. Izaya is my friend. I promised I would protect him. It frustrated me… when I saw him being taken away and I couldn't do anything. You're my only chance! I know that it'd be hard to trust me and take me to your king but…!"

"Ryuugamine Mikado is not my king." She spoke, interrupting him.

Shizuo looked up from his position, a bit confused. "Then you're… not from Orihara's…?"

"No. I'm the main branch of Saika."

"You mean," Shizuo searched his brain for the name. What was her name, that girl with glasses, the one they called… "the Mother? Sonohara… Anri...I believe?"

Her expression remained unchanged but she seemed a bit interested. "Yes. Her line is of my branch while I'm from the original. My clan was destroyed over a thousand years ago in the Great War of Saint Mikaela. Only I survived."

Shizuo blinked. She didn't look over thirty. He knew of the myth of the 'Great War' but to hear it spoken as if it was a real battle that someone lived through was rather crazy. Furthermore, what confused Shizuo was…

"So how am I friends with Karisawa Erika, you ask?" She seemed a bit amused. "Because I'm not a vampire. Rather, I'm partially vampire, I suppose."

Shizuo looked up even more confused. She smiled a bit, rather enjoying the expression.

"Kujiragi Kasane. I'm of the original ancient blood line of Saika from many centuries ago. And at that time, I also learned witchcraft during those boring years to pass some time and became one of the members of Sisters of Witches. Erika was interested in witchcraft so I tutored her."

Shizuo's jaw dropped a bit. Wasn't it forbidden for vampires to become witches? But here was this woman saying that she was from Saika, the one that Izaya had specifically said was one of the oldest lines of vampires. Not only that but she was also a witch. Was this something she could claim to a total stranger, and a hunter at that?

"Do not worry. No one would believe you even if you told anyone." She motioned with her hand and Shizuo stood up. "Though your tale is rather tall, I believe you. My bat has taken a liking to you after all. I believe it's because you have the scent of Erika's ointment." She pointed at Shizuo's shoulder where it was bandaged. Erika had indeed rubbed several ointments and grounded herbs for treatment for days. Meaning, she knew he was Erika's friend from the beginning but had tested him. And he had passed.

"So yes. Despite everything, one thing that is clear is that Erika has treated your wounds and given you her whistle. Besides." A corner of her lips turned just a bit in a smile despite that neutral expression that rivaled his Kasuka's. "I wouldn't mind watching some chaos rain down if I brought a hunter to Mikado's court. It's high time that someone brought down the Dollar's regime."

Shizuo could feel his heart pumping faster. "Then…!"

"But first." She stepped forward and stared deeply into his eyes, making him a bit uncomfortable.

"Then m…" he tried again, wanting to express how urgent it was for him to find the location of the Dollar's castle.

"Shh…" she waved her finger in front of his lips to silence him. "Close your eyes."

Shizuo was a bit confused but he did as he was told.

"Who are you?"

Shizuo remained confused. Then he realized he didn't truly introduce himself. "I'm Heiwajima Shizuo, a hunter and priest in training of the Nebula Hunters Association."

"Ah… yes. But who is that...inside you?"

He frowned. She waved her hand in front of him but he did not see. But he felt something. Something inside him struggling. Like a boiling rage.

"Who are you?"

Shizuo struggled, something was bubbling inside him, like a volcano wanting to explode. He couldn't breath, as if he was suffocating and the air was growing heavier and heavier. He wanted to scream in frustration as he started to gasp.

"Who are you?"

"I do not need to tell you, witch-woman."

Shizuo's eyes remained closed but he could hear his own voice speak words that were not his, startling him.

"You will speak your name." She continued coolly.

"I will not. He is already mine."

"Perhaps. But you're just a shadow." She waved her fingers in front of Shizuo's face as she started to draw a pentagram in the air. "Your name."

Shizuo struggled again. The witch's command was strong and provocative. He wanted to utter the name. He wanted to puke. But nothing came out but hacking of dry air. What the hell was going on?!

"It is too late. I have… all the information I need." Shizuo heard himself say though those were not his words.

"Then, leave. Begone, shadow." She touched Shizuo's forehead and Shizuo fell backwards. He heard or felt something scream and leave through his mouth. He blinked open his eyes, suddenly feeling a wave of exhaustion… and yet his shoulders felt so much lighter.

"W-what...was...that?"

"A shadow. It seems someone's been trying to gain your memory or at least your vision. Have you been having strange dreams or nightmares?" She asked calmly as she helped him stand back up.

"I don't know. Dreams, yeah. But I can't remember them when I wake up." He frowned.

"They'll slowly come back perhaps. He must have been pretty powerful if you can't even remember your dreams after waking up." She sighed. "I tried to get his name but it looks like he was too powerful after all. With a name, I could prevent him from returning...but without it, there's a chance he'll return."

"Return?" Shizuo looked worried. "Like... he'll take control of me again?"

"Not quite. Shadows aren't strong enough to take control of your body. It mostly takes over your mind, shifting through your memories. Sometimes they can see things from your eyes when you're awake. So it's mostly good for information gathering, rarely more."

"...So it was spying on me?" Shizuo did not like that. How long had this been going on? How much did this guy know? Who would do such a thing? "Do you know who it could have been?"

"...Perhaps Kuronuma Aoba, the general of the Blue Squares…." She pondered. "He might be strong enough to withstand my command but I doubt it. This one was stronger than I; a thousand years old witch and a vampire from an ancient heritage… so no. He would be someone far stronger than a child like Kuronuma. Perhaps Ryuugamine Mikado himself."

Shizuo took a sharp intake of breath. Then...was it he, who had accidentally given the information on their location so that Chikage guy had know where they were? He inwardly started to swear to himself. And exactly how strong was this Ryuugamine Mikado guy?! If this vampire, who said she was super strong, admitted that he could be stronger than her?

"I don't know who it is. Just guesses. Anyways he's gone now." The corners of her lips turned into a half amused smile. "It is rare for someone like Ryuugamine Mikado to personally send a shadow so if it was him, you're quite an interesting hunter already."

"Wait...I don't understand." Shizuo frowned. But he was so ordinary right? Well, other than the supernatural strength that no one else seemed to know where he got it from...that and he had a contract with Izaya… Was this Mikado guy that interested in knowing what Izaya was doing?

"I know you have a great many questions. Here isn't the best place for them." She snapped her fingers and suddenly the air was filled with bats. Shizuo stood still as the bats grabbed his armor and struggled to lift them up.

"Uhh… I can help if…" Shizuo first grabbed for his cross. He didn't want that to be taken away. She didn't seem to fear him even when he held onto his weapon.

"No need." She started to make a circle on the ground with a wave of her hand in the air. With the enchantment that was part witch and part vampire, suddenly they were teleported. Shizuo watched as the forest around him melted away and he was standing inside a small wooden house. It was an open space with a cheery fire burning in the fireplace. There was a small morning table with sturdy wooden chairs for two, a broom against the door and a warm rug on the floor. Everything looked like things you'd find in a common place, and nothing that told him that she truly was from some ancient line of vampires. It was just a normal single home.

"Now sit." She gestured as she motioned her bats. The bats struggled to place the armor in a neat corner. "You must be pretty hungry. I shall make you lunch. Is vegetable stew alright for you?" She asked as she placed a large pot over the fire. "Granted, there is nothing else but that so it would have to do."

"I don't understand. Why can't you just tell me where Mikado's castle is? I swear I am strong enough to…"

"Strong enough to storm into the castle on your own?" She looked a bit amused as she poured water into the pot. "Perhaps. But that might endanger Erika more than you know."

That was true, Shizuo nodded. He wanted the location of the castle first, then he could formulate a plan. He didn't have the luxury of waiting to come up with a creative plan before he…

"Be patient. It would take at least a week for an army as large as Lord Chikage's before they could arrive to the castle. I'd wager closer to ten days possibly." She spoke as if she could read his thoughts while she was dicing carrots. "You have plenty of time."

Shizuo breathed a bit and relaxed. He sat back. He probably shouldn't trust a total stranger so much but he had no choice.

"Ah so you admit that you need a plan." She noticed that Shizuo wasn't arguing with her. "Good. First you must learn."

"What is there to learn?" Shizuo asked. Then he realized that sounded pretty naive. "What I mean is… erm… what specifically did you want me to learn? I don't think witchcraft will help me much… I don't know what magic you could teach me in ten days that could get them out of there..."

She turned and shook his head, seemingly amused as if he was such a young pup who didn't even understand how to balance its tail while walking.

"Do you even know why the great Orihara clan decided to join the Dollars instead of staying on their own? Or perhaps just teaming up with Saika clan to fight against the Dollars? Or even why there's this political war between the vampires?"

Shizuo slowly shook his head no. Again, he didn't quite understand why knowing the history of vampires would save Izaya but he decided to listen.

She continued to dice vegetables and started to throw them into the pot one by one as she spoke. "Other than the Orihara clan, the biggest clans of course are the Saika clan and the Yellow Turbans. With Chikage's Toramaru clan joining the Dollars, there are now only fifteen or so clans who are not part of the Dollars." She paused to check her herbs and spice cabinet.

"More than half a century ago, there were more than two hundred vampire clans."

"Two hundred?!" Shizuo looked rather surprised.

"Yes. Two hundred."

Shizuo frowned. "You mean...all of… about one hundred and eighty or so clans are…"

"Yes. They are now the Dollars."

Shizuo was pretty surprised. "Okay. So…. I can see it's a bit alarming but…" He thought it over. It certainly would be very scary if he was in a clan and the neighboring clan was that large, even if there was peace. If the Dollars decided to attack, they would be crushed so easily.

"Do you know why vampires don't make heirs often?" She asked without turning her back, still focusing on her pot.

"Erm...you guys don't feel the need to because you guys live long? I believe?" Shizuo tried to remember what Izaya had said.

"Correct. Because we vampires could live forever as long as we don't die of illness or get killed with a weapon, we don't feel the need to procreate often. We live in bored contentment usually, unable to feel passion towards life. Love isn't bad but seldom we actually fall in love to feel that excitement or passion. It is the opposite of humans, who live a short life and cling onto what vague concept of happiness they have."

"Vague concept?" Shizuo didn't understand. "You mean you guys aren't happy?"

"No, rather. We don't understand your ideology of happiness. Such as war over land." She tried to explain. "We don't ever need 'more' land. We're satisfied with our given territories. In our world, everything is provided for us. Our magic could heal us faster than you humans if we were wounded. We have eternal youth as well as eternal life. As for our food source, all we had to do is turn around a corner and drink blood from you humans. We live in hidden opulent palaces away from predator attacks. In a life like ours, there is no need to fight for power or for land. Or even for love sometimes. At best, the most excitement one would have is a small bickering between vampires which could be settled with a duel if need be."

Erika had mentioned that the boring lords were overjoyed when Izaya had used the bat signal, thinking that they might go to war. Yes, it seemed as if the vampire's lives were mostly peaceful. They didn't have to toil the earth for food like commoners.

"As long as other vampires didn't violate their territory, we were pretty much content." She paused then slowly spoke darkly, "Until the Dollars appeared."

"He appeared out of nowhere." She continued. "A young boy who wasn't human and wasn't a vampire. He was born human but someone must have given them their blood and thus had turned into a vampire. For a human to be that strong, the one who had turned him into a vampire… must have been someone from an ancient lineage. Mikado was powerful, immensely strong. Impossibly strong. Stronger even than the vampires of ancient lineages. Which was impossible of course… since a human who is turned into one at a later time in life could never be as strong as a full fledged vampire. Or so it should have been…"

"Wait so…" Shizuo frowned, trying to take in all the information. "Say if … a normal vampire gave me blood. Then… I won't ever be as strong as say if my friend who turned into a vampire if he had received blood from an ancient line?"

"Correct." She then started to stir the pot. "If a human turns into a vampire, he receives half of that vampire's power. The stronger the vampire, the stronger the human turned vampire would be. But never stronger than the original."

Shizuo nodded. But somehow this Mikado guy was incredibly strong. Somehow...he was stronger than the full fledged ancient noble vampires. He could kind of see why it would be alarming in the vampire society.

"And since Mikado was originally human, he still retained all of his human desires for wealth, power, desires…" She continued to stir the pot as she started to shake the spices into it. "He started to gather men to his side one by one. Then vampire clans. Then the humans followed. Slowly he was growing stronger, not only physically but also in menpower."

Shizuo sat still, feeling like a boy listening to his mom tell him a scary story at night by the fire place.

"No one understood why Mikado was gaining men to his side. But the vampires all panicked. Some started to join Mikado's Dollars. Some joined the other clans such as the Yellow Turban, a strong warrior clan. While other clans such as Sonohara's Saika's started to lose men as they were more of a clan that had gathered philosophers, musicians and poets. People started to amass into a clan that had more strength, a clan that could possibly protect them from the Dollars. Most of course, just went ahead and joined the Dollars. Many elitists did not want to bow their head to a mere half vampire that was once human, but others were too scared not to join them. Besides, Mikado is a rather benevolent ruler, despite his sudden amass of power to his side."

"So… what was Orihara's clan like? What did they do?" Shizuo asked, curiously.

"They were partially warrior clan and also philosophers. They were rather well known for their military strategy and many chess game masters. They weren't a large clan but didn't need to be. Many a brilliant strategists were born there as they highly valued winning game strategies. Quite different from, say, Yellow Turbans, who highly valued winning in wrestling and tournaments of pure power." She sipped the soup with the spoon to taste it. Then she cooly added more of the spice.

Shizuo waited. It was a long history lesson but he understood that she was trying to get somewhere with this after all.

"So the cold war began. A lot of clans started fighting over petty things. Wars between clans started which only made more clans join the Dollars. It was strange because the Dollars themselves did not fight any clans. They just existed. But that existence was enormous and the effect it had on the vampire society was detrimental in magnitude. The vampires felt threatened for the first time since perhaps the Great War with the Saint Mikaela a thousand years ago. So not knowing how to deal with their first anxiety, they fought over the smallest slight, tried to amass their own clan members and pretty much the internal war destroyed most of the clans."

"Is that what happened to Orihara's clan?" Shizuo asked, trying to understand the point of this history lesson. And why it would help him at the castle.

"No. Not quite. Lord Orihara Izaya's father was assasinated along with his mother the queen."

Shizuo drew a sharp breath. He wondered how Izaya had felt then. Was he there when they died? Shizuo himself knew what it felt to be orphraned, hearing his parents being killed in the other room behind a closed door as a child.

_Shizuo growled as his hands crushed the hay mattress under him. "Well fine! Geez, sorry, I asked! See if I worry that we killed your mother in the next hunt!"_

_"Pfff, no worries. My mother's already dead." Izaya giggled. He let out a sigh to try to calm down from his laughing fit. "And my father too. So no worries there."_

Suddenly, he wondered what it was like for Izaya. He had laughed and had told him that he had no parents the first time they had gone to a mission. He remembered how casual Izaya had made it sound. But by now he knew that Izaya tended to cover up his emotions with jokes.

"They never found out who ordered the assassination. Luckily he had left three heirs. The king had left behind a son and two twin younger girls. Although the Orihara clan didn't seem to want to be involved, they were forced to join the cold war. Lord Orihara was young, just a bit over a hundred. He was clearly a genius with many talents and a rather keen intellectual mind but he wasn't wise nor experienced. You can't learn everything from books after all. I believe he wanted to protect what was left of his falling kingdom. By the time he was the prince, or rather, the king, I suppose in your human terms, many of his subjects had joined the Dollars or other stronger clans for protection. The fall of the king hurt the kingdom and many just did not place their trust on the young boy prince."

'Was one hundred years old that young?' Shizuo thought. Izaya did look only in his early twenties...perhaps that was young in vampire years. But now at least, he was learning things about Izaya.

"Young and inexperienced, Lord Orihara Izaya was probably desperate. He needed to show that he was strong enough to lead his people. It would look weak if he were to join the other larger two factions, the Saika and the Yellow Turbans. So instead, he decided something rather bold."

Shizuo could feel that he was holding his breath.

"He planned something so that Saika and the Yellow Turbans would join him instead. From what I gather, he sent in a spy to each kingdom. For the young leader of Yellow Turban, he sent in one of his subjects, a rather cunning and beautiful girl named Saki to seduce Kida. As for Saika, he sent a young human girl named Mika to befriend the lonely queen who was overburdened with her responsibilities and duties of her declining clan." As if satisfied with her stew, now she lifted the small cauldron up so the heat of the fire wasn't directly under it. Then she grabbed a bowl to pour some of the content.

"Those plans failed. Even worse, they were revealed. Lord Izaya had been somehow cunningly manipulated by someone else in the shadows and the plan was exposed to both leaders. They of course declared war on the Orihara clan. Seeing as he had no choice but to fight two of the biggest factions of the vampires, Lord Orihara went to the only other clan that could protect his kingdom."

"..." Shizuo didn't say anything as the woman place a warm steaming bowl of stew in front of him. His stomach growled in reflex but he wasn't hungry.

"So if you wish to help Lord Orihara Izaya in his enemy territory, I shall help you. So first. You must learn." She placed several forks and spoons next to that bowl. "Everything about the vampire culture. From etiquette to basic history. Courtesying and basic dance steps. And the names of the main noble families of the Dollars. And of course, the Blue Squares. As amusing as it would be to see you humiliate him in the Dollars court, at least let me teach you the basics of knowing which spoon and forks to pick up at the dinner table."

He watched as she picked up the further spoon to eat her stew. Then his eyes widened a bit as she ate.

"Wait. Aren't you a vampire?"

"Yes. Also a witch."

"But… you can...eat… human food?" He turned to look down to make sure that there were no lumps of meat that could be human. Or possibly the stew's broth was blood?

She looked amused once more. "Like I said, this is a vegetable stew. There are no humans in there, you even watched me make it. You are safe." Her eyebrows spoke volumes as she said, "you did not know that vampires could eat human food?"

Shizuo shook his head dumbfounded. He did notice that she had sipped the stew to taste it but…

….wait if vampires could eat human food, why did they drink blood…?

"Like I said. You must learn." She simply said as she pointed at the furthest spoon from Shizuo's side of the table. "That's the soup spoon."

* * *

 

"Izaya….you should eat." Kadota spoke in a worried tone. It had been ten days. Ten long days as they were trapped in the carriage, led by Chikage's men. Even though they were all on horseback, the horses needed their rest. And the army was large.

Izaya had not eaten or drank anything ever since Shizuo had left. He looked paler and weaker. What was worst, the first day when Izaya had woken up from his sleep, he was screaming. He had a nightmare and shouted for 'Shizu-chan.' Kadota was there, holding him down before he hurt himself, lightly slapping his once-liege on his cheeks to wake him up from his half-dreams. "I'm here." Kadota had said.

"Shizu-chan?" Izaya's eyes were dilated and unfocused.

"No, it's me. Kadota."

The voice had dawned on Izaya's ears and he abruptly sat up. He looked around trying to remember then he did remember. That he had left Shizuo. That he had been captured by Chikage's group. That they were going to Mikado's castle. With a struggle, he tried to lay back down.

"It is still mid-day." Kadota explained. "Try to get some sleep. The night travel will be long."

But it happened again the second day, Izaya waking up screaming and trembling from an unknown nightmare. He again called out for Shizu-chan. Kadota again had told him that his 'Shizuo' wasn't here. He asked if Izaya needed anything, perhaps a drink?

Izaya had refused and tried to get some sleep.

The next few days again, Kadota would watch as Izaya woke up startled, with muffled screams. He no longer called out for Shizuo. But the nightmares persisted. Kadota did not understand why they had come back. Izaya did not have nightmares back when they were in the log cabin. It only had occurred when they had separated from the hunter.

Kadota did not know that being stuck sleeping inside a small closed space such as a carriage was a trigger for Izaya. Or sleeping against something so hard and cold. Or not being able to wake up next to someone with a protective arm across his side, trying to keep him warm with his own body temperature. Especially the cold chilly air as well as the hard surface continued to torment Izaya in his sleep, forcing him to remember a certain cell and a certain basement with the same texture of the cold hard surface he had laid on for years.

Izaya did not say anything, and refused to tell Kadota as he struggled to sleep.

In a few hours, they would be at the castle. But they knew that the journey was not over, and that it would be even worse once they were at Mikado's court.

"Please. You must have something Izaya." Kadota urged again. He held up another bottle of blood mixed with the finest wine.

"May I uncork it?"

"No."

"Will you at least have a sip?"

"No."

Izaya sent a small glare. "If you wish to drink, go outside and drink. The smell is repulsive."

Kadota sighed. He didn't understand but he didn't argue. He knew that Izaya would be at his worst physical shape, unfit to battle his wits against Mikado at this rate. He just hoped that perhaps Izaya would find something to drink once they got to the castle. And that he could rest his body instead of suffering in this carriage.

"We're almost there." Kadota spoke as he looked outside the window, speaking the obvious.

"Yes." Izaya sighed tiredly. "We're almost there."

They watched as the army slowly dipped behind the waterfall, stepping into the hidden cave. Following the hidden passageway, they suddenly came out to the other end. The capital of the Dollars, enclosed by four mountains whose shadow cast the city in darkness. It was the largest city of the vampire world, as the city expanded even into the mountain caves, using every part as it grew day by day.

Kadota desperately hoped that Izaya was ready for the inevitable confrontation with their king, Ryuugamine Mikado .


	21. Chapter 21

 

* * *

There was a great commotion with the return of the Earl Orihara Izaya. All the people of the Dollars were out on the streets, even the lesser citizens who could only afford to live up high on the mountains that surrounded the city below. The elites lived near the base of the mountain, closer to the castle. There were no cheers, mostly just curiosity. Besides, Izaya was hidden in a carriage while escorted by an army as if he was a war prisoner. Kadota did not like that but made no issue of it.

Once at the castle, Izaya was taken to his place of stay, an opulent room of his station. As an earl, his room was smaller than Kadota's, further away from the main center of the palace, in the west wing. He was given serviceable amount of servants but no more. However Izaya shooed them all away, saying he could take a bath without anyone's help, thank you very much. Kadota still insisted on being with him. Knowing that he won't leave no matter what, Izaya sighed and told him to go ahead and stay if he must, but please don't attend to him. It won't look good if a baron attended the earl, if the news got out.

Kadota couldn't help but stare as Izaya easily knew how to take off his clothes without help. Izaya always had help and was attended properly, back then he didn't know how to even dress himself without help. Then he couldn't help but stare intensely to see if there were any scars. If Izaya had them, the man had made sure they were all healed properly with vampire magic.

As he dipped into the warm bath, Izaya let out a soft relaxed breath, feeling better.

"You don't have to stare so much." He turned to smile at his friend who was standing behind him by the door.

"Ah…" Kadota turned to face away to give his liege some privacy. "I'll go check on Erika and the others. I'll be right back."

Izaya watched as Kadota dropped the curtains and left. He sighed again and leaned back, tucking his wings away. He had done everything he could to act normal but those nightmares, he couldn't do anything about. He shook his head, trying his best not to be overwhelmed again. He kept getting triggered so easily, so much more easily without Shizuo.

He didn't even realize himself how much Shizuo was his anchor until he was gone.

He let out yet another deep sigh and leaned back, trying to relax in the empty room despite the creeping dark corners of his mind slowly consuming him.

Despite all the commotion surrounding the earl, the audience with the king was delayed. Kadota paced up and down the room fretting. He knew that the king was deliberately taking his time summoning Izaya to him, making him look less of an importance.

Izaya didn't seem to care much about his deteriorating reputation. After all, it was already pretty much in the dirt. It didn't really matter that much that it had sunk even lower than before. But Kadota cared and that was sweet of him.

"This is ridiculous!" Kadota sighed as he finally stopped pacing up and down the room and sat down in a huff. Usually he wasn't this easily rattled but the return of his previous liege seemed to have made him uneasy. He wanted things to finally start looking up but it was continuously going down hill. He rubbed his temple to get rid of the headache. He looked over at Izaya who was casually reading a leisure book by the window, enjoying the soft moonlight. It cast a pale light already on the pale vampire who was weakening day by day without drinking.

Kadota had stopped approaching the topic now. It only irritated his liege, or worse, he would command him to leave his presence, which Kadota did not wish to do. While on the surface, this was a safe place for vampires, it was still an enemy territory for Orihara Izaya. His position with Mikado wasn't exactly stable to say the least. They both had no idea what was Mikado's true intentions with Orihara Izaya and his clan. Over the years that Izaya was absent, there was a shaky alliance between them. Most of Izaya's clan members have successfully adopted to the Dollars style, all but those who were extremely loyal to Izaya.

"I see you don't seem all that concerned." Kadota spoke up, his fingers reaching for a decanter of blood wine to drink but stopped himself. He remembered once again that Izaya hated the smell of blood. Even though his throat was burning, he would have to drink somewhere else.

"Why worry when there's nothing we can do about it?" Izaya shrugged as he flipped a page. "He will summon me eventually. After he makes me wait what would seem like a sufficient amount of humiliation and punishment for not returning immediately after seemingly failure of my First Mission."

"So you do have a plan?" Kadota inquired with some hope.

"Working on it."

Kadota made a small dying seal noise.

"Which is why I don't mind the wait." Izaya shrugged as he turned the page again.

The baron tapped his fingers. "I think I got a few ideas." He wondered if he should share them, peeking over.

Izaya didn't seem all that concerned.

"Izaya…"Kadota spoke with very tried patience as an old friend rather than an underling.

"Yes, I'm listening. But I'm pretty sure all your ideas won't work. You're too noble. You probably can't counter some of Mikado's more underhanded public humiliation he probably has planned. I'll just have to be quick enough to adjust to them. So not having a plan is probably better in my case." Izaya flipped another page casually. "Besides, Mikado's eyes are everywhere. Unless you or Erika, Walker or Togusa has some trump card, my best bet is just to wing it."

"I hate just 'winging it' the way you do." Kadota sighed. He trusted Izaya's quick wit, sure. But he always preferred to have some insurance with backup plans.

"Don't you trust me?" Izaya turned to give Kadota a winsome smile, that charming one which Kadota knew was completely fake and not to be trusted. But he couldn't help but smirk back. Izaya had been so distant lately, it was almost nice to see him back to his old playful self, back when they were still vampires with fangs of a child.

"Not if I could help it." Kadota got up and stretched. "It's almost dawn. You should get some sleep soon."

Izaya looked out the window as the sun slowly approached the horizon.

"Not just yet. I miss the sun."

"..." Kadota didn't understand as Izaya had never missed the 'sun.' In fact, he hated them. Always have.

But unknown to Kadota, Izaya couldn't help but smile when he remembered every morning there would be a polite knock on the door. Vorona would be there to grab Izaya and order him to help them with the laundry washing. He remembered fondly as he tried to run away from his duties but Vorona was rather quick. Besides, Izaya liked being caught so he would let her catch him. She'd drag him in the blistering morning sun to the river to wash all the dirty laundry. And how he would splash the water at some of the nun and tell the dirtiest jokes he could think of on the expense of Shizuo's pride. He especially remembered that warm feeling he got when all the laundry that he had hand washed personally would be lined up between the trees to hang and dry in the sun. It always felt very accomplished, showing the world that look, he could actually complete something. This spoiled prince from a far away clan that no longer exist. And having that sensation of accomplishment in the morning made the day feel even more productive. The reading and studying in the library. The daily chat with Shinra where they would trade stories. He even sort of missed Shinra prattling about his headless fairy that one day he planned to leave the church in search of. Shinra would go on and on about his fairy, Celty was her name, how she had saved him when he was lost in the woods one day. How she had guided him out. It was the same old story but Izaya didn't mind listening. Shinra was there for him during those cold dark days in the basement, secretly giving him painkillers when he could. Sometimes cutting the experiments short as possible.

Then there was his evenings he spent with Shizuo.

Izaya couldn't even begin to start with Shizuo. Their evenings were spent going over what they had learned that day. It was very pleasant way to spend the end of their day by the fireplace of their wooden cabin with the cheery fire and a wooden round table. Shizuo would try his best to scribble his notes even when he wasn't good at taking notes and Izaya sometimes had to correct his spellings. He almost chuckled to himself when he remembered the first time he woke up with Shizuo's morning wood brushing against him while he snored away. Or that one time when Shizuo had accidentally brushed the base of his wing, causing Izaya to jolt at the touch of his sensitive spot. It had caused him an erection and Izaya had to slap that hand away. Then there was that one time when Shizuo had held him close and sighed in relief that Izaya was unhurt.

That...gave him memories he didn't want to share with anyone else.

"Izaya!"

Kadota's sudden cry forced Izaya back to his reality as the baron quickly closed the curtains.

"The sun! It's burning you!"

Izaya looked down at his uncovered hands. Sure enough the sun had started to burn him, forming small boils and he hadn't noticed as he was lost in thought. He could feel his cheeks were burnt too. Normally this weak sunlight shouldn't hurt him at all. But he was weaker now, as weak as Ruri, the sun was actually causing him damage.

"You aren't healing fast enough." Kadota frowned as he grabbed Izaya's wrist and checked his hand and then Izaya's face. "You really need to drink."

Izaya snapped his hand away and frowned. "I'm fine."

"You keep saying that." Kadota sighed. "It's been what, two weeks and a half? Almost three."

Izaya shrugged. But his mind was calculating fast. Kadota was counting as if Izaya was fed on the day that Shizuo had left. He wasn't including the days that Shizuo was sleeping for a week. He didn't think anyone had seen him that day while hidden deep in the forest when Shizuo cut his tongue but…

Suddenly, Izaya's thought was abruptly cut off at the scent of sharp blood.

Izaya's eyes widen as Kadota rolled his sleeves and slashed his own wrist, holding it out in front of him.

"Drink, Izaya." Kadota's tone was dark and serious.

"...Dotachin. This is forbidden." Izaya took a sharp intake of breath at the scent of his friend's blood. A vampire drinking from another vampire was considered the number one sin among them. It was considered cannibalism.

"At this rate, you're going to die."

"I can live for at least a month or two without drinking blood." Izaya took a step back and away from the temptation. He watched as the blood dripped down that arm. The smell...was still horrid but he was so hungry. So very thirsty…

"Then what? Why are you starving? Who are you starving for?" Kadota insisted as he took a step forward. Izaya swallowed then cringed. The smell...it was still disgusting. It still smelled like urine and feces. But his throat was perched. His body weak with hunger.

"I can't… I'm sorry this is… wrong." Izaya backed against the wall as Kadota cornered him. His eyes widen as Kadota did not stop there. He pinned his liege against the wall, their chest touching.

"Dotachin?" Izaya's eyes widen as he looked up at his taller friend. Never had Kadota ever forced something before. He had always listened. He always placed himself lower than him. But Kadota's eyes were dark and brooding. It sent shivers down Izaya's spine.

"I don't care." Kadota answered, his voice low and unrelenting. "You're going to drink."

"No." Izaya cringed away. He didn't... he didn't want to drink Kadota's blood. It would make their relationship change in an intimate way that they would not be able to come back from. He didn't want that. Even if it wasn't forbidden, sharing blood directly like this was like having a sexual intercourse with his best friend. And as the receiving end of the blood, Izaya would be in a lot lower position than Kadota, a complete switch from their relationship now. "Don't…"

But for the first time Kadota didn't obey. He grabbed Izaya's chin with his other finger and forced him to look at him. Izaya was a lot weaker, he couldn't struggle. Kadota was unfairly using his charm magic and Izaya felt it. He couldn't help but feel forced to obey. This was rape. Izaya gasped as he tried to deny him. Kadota was forcing him for the first time, controlling Izaya's mind to obey.

"Don't...Dotachin…" Izaya pleaded for the first time to his best friend. "Don't do this…"

"I'm sorry, Izaya." Kadota too looked sad as if he did not want to force anything on him but felt that he had no choice. Izaya's health came first. "But you'll drink today."

Izaya closed his eyes and shuddered, trying not to remember what happened down back at the basement. Trying his best not to feel himself be violated once more, now by his best friend. Trying his best to close his mind and his heart, allow the violence to happen again and pretend it was a dream that couldn't hurt him, just like how he had survived all those years down in that disgusting and deplorable church. And trying his best not to scream for Shizuo.

Just then, he smelled a whif of a pleasant scent that transcended over Kadota's scent. A scent so sweet, Izaya's heart fluttered with hope even if it was impossible.

There was a loud clattering noise as a steward ran to Izaya's living quarters and hurriedly banged on the door.

Kadota glared but he moved away from Izaya's trapped body. Izaya practically fell to the stone floor, barely able to resist Kadota's magic. He swallowed as he called out, "Come in."

The panting servant huffed as he delivered the message, "You are summoned to His Majesty's court."

"Well, finally." Kadota said as he wiped the blood from his wrist and healed his wound with his magic. There wasn't even a scratch left on his skin. He paused with a realization then he frowned. "It's morning. His Majesty doesn't hold court in the morning."

The panting servant straightened up to add to his report. "We have an uninvited guest. They are summoned to the court as we speak. His Majesty wishes everyone to be present."

Kadota and Izaya stood still at the implication. With the door open, Izaya could clearly smell him. The sweet honeyed scent he could smell miles away.

The scent of a certain priest and a hunter.


	22. Chapter 22

 

* * *

"Who are you praying for?"

Ruri's heart jumped at the sudden voice. She turned around to see Sister Vorona.

"For Shizuo-san…. and Izaya-san's safe return home." Ruri spoke softly, just above a whisper. She knew she was unwanted in the prayer chapel. But Shizuo and Izaya were late and that worried Ruri. Being late was never a good sign among the hunters' community.

"Saint Jibrile is a good choice." Vorona spoke as she looked up at the statue that Ruri had knelt under. "The beloved healer who died sacrificing herself so the whole castle could flee….She was a renowned healer and protector of the weak and poor." It was an old tale, one of many stories that were from the Great Wars. The most loved gentle nun who decided to stayed behind to buy time while others fled. The army of vampires rained down on the castle and took her prisoner, burning her as a witch with a spell so she could never be reborn. She was an infamous nun whose power to heal was so miraculous, vampires believed she could bring back even the dead. Once they had captured her, their main priority was making sure she would never be able to use her healing powers again or be reborn, allowing all the other humans to run with their lives. The tale of course came with a tragic love story between Jibrile and the vampire hunter Mikaela who unfortunately would reincarnate again and again in search for her with each of his life time despite the fact that she would never be reborn due to the vampire magic cast upon her death.

"Yes… I admire her greatly for her sacrifice." Ruri looked at the smooth statue of the beloved saint with adoration. "I wish I could give my life for a cause as great as hers."

Vorona was silent for a bit, her gaze lowered. Then she spoke quietly, "You know… if you're praying for safe journey, perhaps Saint Mikaela might suit Shizuo-senpai better."

"Saint Mikaela?" Ruri turned around, a bit confused. "The warrior saint?"

"Yes. He is after all, considered the great protector of all humankind. There are rumors that Saint Jibrile and Saint Mikaela were in love. And when she perished, he embarked on his final journey to kill all the vampires at the Castle of Veibridance. Him and later, Saint Lafael." After the death of Jibrile, the humans were in great despair with the loss of such a great soul. The war between the vampires and humans were at its climax as Mikaela took up his weapon and bitterly traveled north to the headquarter of the vampires. Alone. It was said that he took on a million vampires, annihilated many great ancient blood lines. To this day, the vampires have never fully recovered, their race diminished and their ancient blood lines short in numbers.

"I know of it. It's rather a remarkable tale… my grandmother used to tell me as a child." Ruri vaguely remembered her vampire grandmother. Though of course, her side of the story was quite different from the human's tale to be sure. To the vampires it was not a story of victory but of horror. Especially the tale that followed. Saint Mikaela was never put to death, being too strong and powerful even by himself. It took all the powers of the great ancients combined just to chain him down and reincarnate him.

Then came Saint Lafael bitter too with anguish at a loss of his fellow brother hunter and friend. He too was incredibly strong, mainly a spell caster compared to his partner Mikaela who was mostly a man of physical power, as he charged at the castle knowing that it was a suicidal mission. He went to take upon revenge as well as crush the already broken vampire army, finishing the job that Saint Mikaela had set upon and died trying. It was this final battle that ended both his life and great number of vampires that finally caused the downfall of the vampire clans. The humans do not know what was his final spell but the legend spoke of Lafael's curse which still lingered over the vampires even to this day. They were forced to retreat into hiding while the humans rejoiced and flourished. The vampires decided a different method of living afterwards, using their longevity to bid their time.

"The Great War that took place almost 800 years ago…" Vorona's eyes grew distant. The legend was tall. The story was so old, it wasn't even clear if these saints were truly alive or just an old wives tale. Even if they had lived at one point, most of it were probably false. But they both looked up at the stain glass window that painted above Saint Jibrile. The golden armored saint holding his tall weapon, the infamous vampire hunter that had almost wiped out all the vampires before he too perished along with Saint Lafael.

"It is a sad, tragic story."

* * *

Shizuo did not like the plan.

However, she was not a member of the Dollars. Kujiragi could not leisurely take him there. Sneaking him in would be out of question as his scent was clearly that of a human instead of a vampire.

"You will be rewarded with a high position in court if you give him as a gift to His Majesty, Lord Mikado Ryuugamine." She had said.

The lady named Earthworm shrugged as she contemplated her nails. "Why should I believe you, old witch? A hunter is not allowed in the Capital of the Dollars." The 'old witch' Kujiragi took the insult without batting an eye.

"Because he is the one that Lord Mikado had sent the Earl Orihara to fetch."

Lady Earthworm turned her head as if the news dawned on her with piqued interest. "The ones that the Earl 'failed' to bring?"

"One of them, yes."

The 'First Mission' was one of the first things Shizuo had asked Kujiragi for information. He then learned that when a lord wanted to bring his entire clan under the Dollar's protection, in order to pledge their loyalty, their leader must undertake the 'First Mission.'

"Are they hard to perform?" Shizuo had asked.

"To others it would seem easy. But to the one undertaking the mission, it could be a rather tough task. Some First Missions may seem difficult but if it's simply overpowering an opponent like Lord Chikage's mission, those are rather easy to do. There are others which may seem easy but are rather humiliating, for example with Lord Izumii Ran. He had to bow and kiss the boots of his own younger brother who they've had civil wars between for many decades."

Shizuo didn't understand how it would be humiliating or difficult for Izaya to kidnap a pair of human boys though. Kujiragi herself did not know and couldn't answer for him.

The hunter's thoughts were scattered as Lord Earthworm's eyes were on him fully, her gaze washing over him. "He's not a boy anymore I see. Do you think that might affect his appreciation for my gift?"

"If anything, I'm sure you won't mind gloating that you've accomplished something that the Earl had failed in past all these years."

"Very true." Earthworm smiled as she clapped her hands. "I can't wait to see that bastard's face when I show up and accomplish his failed Mission for him!"

Shizuo didn't say anything, nor did Kujiragi. The witch had explained that somehow, the mission of kidnapping human boys would be a tough task for someone like Izaya while it would be easy for others. This lady clearly did not understand such basic facts of the Dollars court.

"Chain him." Lady Earthworm waved her hands in an offhanded manner as the guards approached. Shizuo took a shallow breath as the men stepped forward to cuff his wrists. And with that the deal was made.

* * *

The journey was rough but Shizuo did not complain. He was tied up like a prisoner and placed in a cell on a cart like an animal. It was made out of thick wood and Shizuo sighed heavily as he tried to be comfortable. It was so stupid to imprison him in wood but of course, these vampires thought he was just a normal human.

They could not touch the cross as it was coated with holy water. At first Earthworm wanted nothing to do with the holy golden cross of a vampire hunter but Kujiragi hinted that it would be a wonderful gift to Mikado who treasured old relics. Especially a vampire hunter's weapon which would be hard to come by. So Earthworm got her men to wrap a noose around the gold cross and drag it up to a cart to carry to the Dollars Castle. Earthworm, it seemed, was easy to manipulate with a few praises, Shizuo thought.

Then again this Kujiragi woman was almost as cunning as Izaya. With fewer words to say.

It took only a day as Kujiragi had made sure that they met Earthworm close to the Dollars Mountain. Kujiragi, Shizuo noted, planned far in advance and was particular to details just like Izaya. Shizuo was pretty grateful to his teacher. He almost felt a renewed kinship with Erika who would be his senpai.

He shifted in his bound hands, trying to make sure that the necklace with the pouch hung around his neck remained hidden in his clothing. A parting gift from his teacher.

"This is just contingency for the road," she told him. "You'll know where to get more I'm sure, later."

Shizuo smiled at the memory. She had taught him great number of things about vampire society and culture. When he didn't know how to thank her and asked if there was anything he could do for her in return, she gave him a mysterious answer.

"You've already paid for it a long time ago. You let me live."

Shizuo did not understand her words as he had never met her before in his entire life. But he remembered her haunting look, her eyes distant as if she was looking past him. There were still great many questions he had but she told him he would know in due time. Once he met Izaya.

Izaya.

Shizuo felt sick in the stomach knowing that it had been almost a month since Izaya had last drank his blood. Was he alright? Did he try drinking something else? He knew that blood of others tasted bad but if for survival, Izaya would surely drink some. But seeing that the blood pretty much had no healing effect back at Sonohara's castle, probably drinking the vile tasting blood did nothing for him nutrient wise too.

It was futile. Izaya needed Shizuo's blood. They both knew it. So why...why did Izaya push him away?

Shizuo had thought about it long and hard but he could only think of one answer.

And it was time to find out if he was right.

* * *

"Make way! Make way! Make way for Lady Earthworm!"

The crowd parted as the court bustled with excitement and chatter. The entire mountain had woken up at dawn despite the rising sun when they arrived. All the vampires wanted to glance at the cart that held a vampire hunter. They did not understand why this one was so special that he had to be taken alive, and brought to the heart of the vampire castle. The location of Dollars Mountain was a jealously guarded secret and the fact that the Lady had decided to break the code meant that this vampire hunter must be ultra special. Even more so when their King Mikado held an emergency court in the morning. All the vampires that were invited scrambled into their best courtier outfits and ran to the castle. Those who couldn't, aimlessly wandered around the castle walls for any news. There were many bobbing black umbrellas as well as humans who waited anxiously with invested curiosity.

Shizuo was roughly transported and treated more like an animal as they poked and prodded him to get up and walk with long distance lances by at least twenty soldiers. The hunter quietly obeyed, not putting up a fight. His main goal was to get to Izaya after all, in any shape or form. Luckily for him, Earthworm decided to bring the cross as well, being dragged by a dozen soldiers with ropes so they could both be presented as gifts to the great Vampire King.

The castle was grand, fit for a king. Shizuo had never seen a castle before, so this one looked particularly enormous to him.. There were elegant towers to gently curved archaic arches; everything that he had heard from stories as a child. It was like a picturesque image to him, the grey stones, the wooden drawbridge with a moat all the way down to the iron gates for great sieges. He had been to Kida's castle which was stout and built haphazardly. It was as if the workers were more interested in building their own muscles than taking their time with reinforcing their home defenses. And there was Sonohara's castle which he didn't get to see much of. It was mostly hidden inside a cave, the castle was much smaller as they had to frequently move place-to-place. But the Dollars' was like none of those. They had the time as well as the money to spend in displaying their power and grandeur. And it clearly showed.

"Welcome to Sunshine 60." Earthworm smirked when Shizuo had paused from walking to gape at the breathtaking display of their castle. "It's called Sunshine 60 because there's literally 60 steps to reach the top of the castle. And the sun can shine on it despite being on the base of these high mountains due to its great height." Earthworm lightly smacked his back with a riding crop. "Now then, let's get going. I don't want to burn out here." And she stepped along with her high heels as her servant held up her canopy of crow feathers over her head to keep her away from the sun.

Inside it was even more beautiful, all the walls covered with beautiful tapestries that told ancient tales, vibrant in colors. All the windows had also stained glasses, colorful roses and mosaics of great war stories. There was a long red carpet that he followed, the wooden bracket around his wrist still chafing his skin. Despite all the beauty and grandeur, Shizuo remained focused. He was at the heart of the enemy's territory. He could probably survive with his cross by his side but he needed to escape here with Izaya. And until he found him...he would have to put up with every single torture these vampires could dish out. He wasn't sure how long he might be able to handle especially if they start cutting off his limbs.

...Izaya.

Izaya had endured this for fifteen years.

This kind of fear and tension, the apprehension and then...the inevitable. The actual torture as his limbs were cut and his entire body was experimented upon daily until it became a psychological torture as well as mental endurance.

...Could Shizuo actually endure that too?

He did not know. He knew his body could handle a lot of abuse but his limbs wouldn't grow back.

Even if he did, he wasn't sure if he was mentally capable of enduring intense pain day-by-day.

How did Izaya survive for so long?

Shizuo was at a loss. Part of him wanted to focus on surviving this ordeal but the more he walked towards his impending doom, the more he couldn't help but think about Izaya and worry over him. If only he could somehow revert back time and save him, he would. If he had the knowledge he knew now, he would have freed that vampire a long time ago from that bloody rotten cell.

He stood in front of the imposing door, triple his height. Its span could allow to enter at least a dozen men at once. Everything about this place was grand and large, making everyone small, even Shizuo. He didn't like it. He could feel this 'Mikado' guy's mind almost. Perhaps he was trying to achieve the effect of showing how powerful Dollars was but it seemed to Shizuo that it made everyone feel 'small' so he could look 'big.' It seemed almost petty yet subtly planned psychological attack from the entrance.

He waited along with the other soldiers and the lesser courtiers until the court was ready to receive him. He stood tall and his head high, letting the gossiping vampires take a good look at his face and his vampire hunter armors and jacket. The symbol of Nebula gold was clearly visibly on his breast pocket as well as the side of his arm.

It would be a lie if he said he wasn't nervous. But strangely he felt confident that once he found Izaya, everything will be okay. He just had to endure whatever torture he would be forced upon. As long as he could swing his weapon, he figured it would be okay. He was too dumb anyway to plan around whatever tricks these vampires had up their sleeves. The only way he knew how to fight was charge forward head-on. Like right now. Entering the heart of the vampires by the front door. It was the only way Shizuo knew how.

As for the rest, he would trust Izaya and let him take care of the rest.

Finally there was a fanfare and a string of announcements followed by another string of garbled gibberish of Lady Earthworm's titles Shizuo did not understand. Then the door opened.

Smiling, Lady Earthworm yanked on the chain that was linked to the wooden wrist cuffs on Shizuo and led him like a dog. With her high heels clicking loudly and her bouncy boobs openly in display, she proudly walked forward with all the attention of the court.

Although she believed everyone's attention was on her, it wasn't the case. Everyone's eyes were focus on the man she was dragging along.

The young blond vampire hunter followed by the golden cross which was also dragged by several vampires with ropes, all who were too afraid to touch the infamous weapon. Once they came to the front, the soldiers used their wooden staves to smack the back of Shizuo's knees to force him to the floor. He growled briefly. All they had to do was ask him to kneel and he would have.

"Your Majesty!" Her voice boomed as she stood at the center of the court.

"I present you my gift, the Failed First Mission of Lord Orihara. I'm completing it."

Shizuo's eyes were not on the king however. He didn't care who Mikado was. Instead his eyes scanned as he sniffed for the familiar scent.

To his left he caught a whiff. He quickly looked up. His eyes soften instantly as he recognized the stricken face of his vampire. His vampire. Orihara Izaya in his dark vampire court outfit, elegantly laced and beautiful. Shizuo's relief turned to worry as he noticed Izaya looked pale. Very pale.

Granted he also looked as if he saw a ghost before he quickly covered his emotion and put on a blank disinterested face.

"Order in the court! Order in the court!"

Shizuo did not even notice that the court had gotten noisy after Earthworm's bold announcement. He turned to look at the center. The booming voice was a young boy in blue. He looked perhaps fourteen, just reaching his teen years. He stood right next to the king, standing straight and trying to look important.

'That must be Aoba.' Shizuo thought. Kujiragi had described all the important vampires to him. The Blue Squares wore blue of course, as the elite guards of Mikado Ryuugamine. And their general was Kuronuma Aoba. Despite his young appearance, Kujiragi had given him great warnings of the sudden rise of this half vampire. As a half vampire, he should not have such great powers but he did. An aberration that Kujiragi herself could not explain.

And on the throne of course was the King of all vampires himself, Mikado Ryuugamine. He looked young, even younger than Aoba in some ways. His face looked innocent, smiling and shy as Aoba tried to achieve order in court. As if it was rather embarrassing to be sitting there and look important. He laughed a bit hesitantly once the court finally calmed down.

"Aaah… ahaha… ah… I'm glad everyone has gathered today at such short notice."

His stuttering voice and nervous laughter did not at all felt threatening. Shizuo had come fully prepared but seeing it was so different from learning beforehand. This boy seemed so awkward and out of place.

But this was the almighty King of Vampires. The boy who had somehow achieved the impossible and reunited most of the vampire clans. The boy who was born human who later turned into a vampire and yet he was stronger than any ancient vampire ever born.

The boy who had somehow infiltrated his dreams to sneak a look into his memory. Shizuo had to remember that. Even if he had no proof, Kujiragi believed it was most likely that it was Mikado who had snuck inside his mind deviously. It was hard to believe but Shizuo reminded himself once more that he could not let this image of a pathetic looking boy fool him. This guy had basically violated his mind before and Shizuo still felt sickened by the idea that someone had looked into his most private inner thoughts.

"And… what do I owe the pleasure?"

"His name…." Lady Earthworm proudly started to announce before she realized something and paused. Frowning, she looked over at the blond hunter. "What's your name?" She had forgotten that she never asked his name since humans were low beings, far inferior for her attention.

"...Heiwajima Shizuo." Shizuo replied.

"Yes. That." She turned to face her king once more proudly as if she had brought a rare talking animal for a gift.

"And...how do I know… this one is the same child as the one assigned to Lord Orihara?" Mikado asked almost cautiously as he was polite.

"..." Lady Earthworm opened her mouth to speak but paused. Then she tried again and frowned. She realized she didn't actually have proof. Shizuo groaned inwardly.

"A-anyways! Lord Orihara could be the proof. He's known that this child was the one he was suppose to bring for his First Mission but did not do so. He came back bare-handed. How mortifying." Lady Earthworm quickly tried to turn the tables around as the crowd bustled again with excited murmurs.

"Order. Order!" Aoba tried to calm the crowd as everyone's attention was directed at the high balcony where Izaya stood pale and devoid of emotion. All the elite vampires were on the floor closer to the king. The fact that Izaya was in the galley showed how low rank he was. Despite being far up and away, everyone could clearly see the small uncaring shrug. Lady Earthworm gritted her teeth.

"Are you denying that this is the man you refused to bring to accomplish your First Mission?!" She demanded with a rude point to the kneeling blond.

"I'm more curious as to why you brought a vampire hunter to the castle, my Lady. He is not a child anymore." Izaya's voice wasn't loud and even though he stood far away, everyone's ears were trained to catch every single word.

"Yes, why did you bring him to our castle?" Aoba asked too, directing his attention to Lady Earthworm. "It's forbidden. Now he knows the secret location that's been heavily guarded for half a century!"

"Oh don't worry. He's quite tamed." Lady Earthworm waved her hand and used her riding crop to smack across Shizuo's cheek. "See? Not a flinch."

Shizuo's thick skin naturally did not split and bleed but he glared up at the vampire woman. Sure he allowed himself to be captured but he did not say that he wished to be abused and tortured. There was a small hesitation as nervousness rippled through her consciousness.

"Heel, dog!" She smacked him again. This was too much. He was already kneeling, what more did she want? With Izaya in sight, he didn't even see the point of going along with this. He stood up. Then he broke the wooden crates that were shackling his wrist by just flexing.

The court erupted as several vampires screamed and tried to retreat, but not quite run away as their curiosity were stronger than their own caution for safety. There were even more soldiers quickly trying to contain the 'situation' as they tried to encircle the vampire hunter when he walked over and grabbed his golden cross. When the dozen soldiers who were holding onto the cross with rope tried to retaliate, he took them by surprise by swinging his giant cross….and the vampires along with them. He swung all of them in the air and flicked them across the wall. They all fell with a clatter.

The entire court was stunned for one second at the great display of power before it exploded with chaos. Aoba was screaming for order, more soldiers were running in from all entrances, there were vampire ladies shrieking for no reason what so ever, and vampire lords trying to shout commands as if they were generals, demanding at the lowly soldiers to resolve this complication immediately. There were shouts of "Kill him!" and "This is unacceptable!" and of course, "Order! I said order!"

Everyone and everything was chaos except for the little boy on the throne who was watching with a gleeful smile as if he had found a new toy to play with.

Shizuo held the golden cross firmly in his hand and tried to grasp the situation. He was at the heart of the largest vampire society's castle with the entire army surrounding him. These were the most strongest and the most powerful vampires, right now at the center of the court. And all the soldiers were already ready to attack, their long lances circling him completely as the shield holders and longsword wielders started to flank behind them.

This was a mess. Shizuo sighed softly. He wasn't sure how he would get out of it but somehow he needed to grab Izaya and…

Just then, there was a flurry of wind, the gust pushing back the soldiers a step. Then Izaya landed in the center, right in front of Shizuo with his cape fluttering behind him.

"Your Majesty." Izaya knelt down to the floor respectfully. But when he looked up at his king, his crimson eyes flashed piercingly as his eyes narrowed.

The entire court paused once more, all of them holding their breath with the gripping tension in the air. This was the most excitement most of these lords and ladies of the vampire court have had in decades if not centuries and they were all indeed ecstatically excited to see the outcome.

"I have not failed my First Mission. In fact, I had planned to complete it very soon, if it were not for Lady Earthworm's interference."

"What?! I wasn't..!" Lady Earthworm, who had actually fled several spaces away, shouted in her defense from a good safe distance of five soldiers in front of her.

"Silence!" Aoba shouted. Once Lady Earthworm clamped her mouth shut with a huff, he gestured his hand for Izaya to proceed. Shizuo held his breath, wondering what Izaya had up his sleeves this time for them to get out of this 'mess."

"You see, I was investigating." Izaya dared to stand up as all the soldiers circling them moved few paces back, giving the Lord some room to make his statement in front of the court.

"Oh? What were you investigating?" Mikado leaned to the side of his throne, his smile indicating that he was highly interested in Izaya's answer. Shizuo had a guess though, that that smile meant, he already knew what Izaya had planned to say, even though the hunter had no clue what that was. He decided to wait and listen...and try to follow Izaya's cue when it was time to act.

"You see, there was no possible way that my First Mission could be so simple. Kidnap two human children? Kill their parents in front of them? Sounds just a bit too easy, don't you think?" Izaya nonchalantly waved his hand and shook his head as if his king had told him to go pick some wildflowers and bring it to him as a present.

However, Shizuo's mind grew blank. Did...did Izaya truly say what he had thought he had said? His First Mission was to kill their parents? And more over, in ' _front of them'_?

"And with further investigation, I had realized something of most importance." Izaya smiled charmingly as he had the full attention of the court, the entire audience of low borns and high borns, humans and vampires alike listened to him attentively as he was the star of the show he had just sabotaged from Lady Earthworm.

"We all know that the blood of the descendants of Saints are highly sought after luxury. What could make better wine than the bitter blood of our own greatest adversaries? Turning the children of the abhorred Saints into fine delicacies as we laugh at our final victory over our worst enemies? Ah but you see… I realized something. Something special about this one in particular."

Shizuo did not understand. What was going on? What was Izaya saying? Blood of the descendants of the Saints? Wine made from the children of their enemies? What was Izaya trying to-

"Let me introduce you, Saint Mikaela, reborn and present. The reincarnation of our most hated enemy, the harbinger of death and destruction. The very man who had killed our fathers and grandfathers in the flesh."

There was an audible gasp as the entire court froze from the shocking delivery. Some of the ladies of the court fainted. Some of the older vampires held a hand to their chest to squeeze their throbbing heart while stepping forward for a better look. Their eyes finally widened with recognition. Although younger, the once familiar face started to dawn on them. The face of the one human that almost brought total annihilation of all vampire race in just one night.

Izaya turned to face a stricken Chikage who stood near the front and not too far away from them. "That's my trump card, Chikage-chan. See, I did have one. I just don't flaunt it like you do unless it's the right time at the right place, ' _sweetheart_ '." Izaya threw back the taunt at the vampire who had captured him, complete with an audacious wink.

* * *

**OMAKE**

_(A little short story that I couldn't add previously due to the pacing of the story lol. Enjoy!)_

"Hey Kasuka."

"Yes brother?"

Kasuka turned to look up at his blood brother who came up to him sheepishly as he scratched the back of his head, an old habit that never died since childhood. When he did that, it meant Kasuka should take him seriously. Granted Kasuka would never laugh at his older brother who he greatly respected, but he knew to proceed with extra caution as his older brother was rather sensitive and overly emotional.

"Uhh so…"

"..."

Kasuka stood still and waited like a stone statue watching the seasons change.

"You see… there's this...friend of mine…"

Kasuka remained still as a grass sprouting seeds and spreading its roots.

"Like I heard this story from someone else, you see. It's not quite something I know first hand or anything."

"Of course." Kasuka agreed calmly with a straight face.

"So he like uhh… has a vampire friend. Well not exactly a friend, it's more like a relationship but not 'that' kind of relationship, it's more like…"

Kasuka's face did not betray him as there was no hint or sign of any emotion.

"So he uhh… has this vampire. And uhh… they need to… get along so to speak. Actually, they kind of have to uhh… team up and fight and go on missions and…" Shizuo started to ramble as he waved his hands in the air in exasperation. "Things don't go right and he keeps getting hurt and I keep wondering what the fuck am I doing wrong and I just don't know why he keeps getting hurt and oh wait, no so this is about my friend, see. So my 'FRIEND' has this other vampire friend and he's going on this mission and he keeps getting hurt and they can't get along and he keeps doing things that frustrates me and he always pokes fun of me and ugh! Why can't he just follow my orders!"

"..."

Kasuka knew better than to point out any slips of his passionate and kind brother. Many of his slips.

"So I want to know, like… how do you treat Ruri-chan? And… how do you guys fight in your missions." Shizuo sighed heavily in exasperation and his shoulders dropped in dejection.

Kasuka pondered quietly for a few seconds which lasted few minutes and Shizuo wondered to himself if his younger brother had fallen asleep with his eyes open again. Shizuo could feel the cold sweat cover his face and his back as he waited. At this rate the sun would set and Izaya would still be hurt in their next mission. The question he asked wasn't that hard was it? It was a simple question right? How did he get along with another vampire enough to fight at missions properly without the vampire getting hurt every fucking time! It can't be a hard question, right? Right?!

"Well…" Kasuka finally spoke up and Shizuo tensed up, craning his ears to catch every single word that would spew out of those tight lips.

"Hijiribe-san usually sits and waits."

"...uh-huh."

"She sometimes sings."

"... okay..."

"Then when the vampires appear, I capture them."

"...?"

Shizuo's eyebrows furrowed.

"Wait, that's it?"

"Yes. That's it."

"Wait. What? How?!"

"Hijiribe-san sings. And I capture them."

"?"

Shizuo thought it over. Flipped the idea over the other way. Thought it's way through backward and forward and…

"I DON'T UNDERSTAND?!" His mind exploded. Wait, what? How?! WHY?!

Kasuka didn't seem to understand why his brother did not understand.

"She sings and I…"

"No wait, hold up." Shizuo held a hand up while he used the other hand to rub his temple, trying to remove the impending headache that was forming.

"I… I got that part. I don't think I understand the rest of the part."

"I don't understand." Kasuka tilted his head with his emotionless face.

"I don't understand why you don't understand why I don't understand!" Shizuo bashed his head against the wall. The poor cracked formed around it as a small chip broke off and fell to the bottom.

"I think Orihara-san is a great singer. He is a great addition at the choir." Kasuka offered.

Shizuo groaned. His headache was definitely forming.

"I don't think your way of fighting will help me out after all…" He completely forgot this was supposed to be a story of his 'friend.'

"Well…there is one other thing I could suggest."

"What is it?" Shizuo asked, moaning as his head was still smacked against the wall.

"How about talking to him?"

"Huh?" Shizuo turned to face his brother. "What do you mean talk to him? I already talk to him. I mean er… my friend already talks to him. Er. That is, that other vampire. You know."

"Of course" Kasuka's face remained straighter than a zealot monk who remained chaste and holy for 100 years without a single masturbation. "What I'm saying is, perhaps your friend should talk to the vampire about battle plans beforehand. Perhaps he has good ideas."

"..." Shizuo thought about it. Flipped the idea over his head. Rolled around with it some more… wrestling for any struggles.

"So I should ask, I mean-he should ask how to approach the situation?"

"The vampire might have a better idea than your friend." Kasuka gravely answered to such a simple solution to the most ridiculous question if anyone was overhearing them.

"Huh, okay. Er I'll do that...t-that is, I'll go tell my 'friend' that. Yeah."

"Of course, brother."

Muttering to himself, Shizuo was still contemplating as he parted ways as Kasuka watched his brother's back.

A small hint of a smile appeared briefly on the face of the stone Buddha Kasuka as his eyes softened ever so slightly. He hoped that in their next mission, his brother and Orihara-san would get along and come home unharmed. For both of their sake.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note:
> 
> I really wish I was able to fit this story somewhere but I couldn't so here's the omake! I hope it's cute and fun despite the tension in this chapter!
> 
> Oh and if anyone figured it out, remember there's a legend of a singing fairy? That Togusa is obsessed over in trying to catch? Yeah… that's why the vampires are enchanted by Ruri's songs lol. And Togusa is a huge fanboy for Ruri. Hope that explains it a bit despite Kasuka and Ruri's crazy way of completing their missions ahahaha.
> 
> And yes finally, the Mikado arc is here! The Dollars arc! Finally kind of the mid-point of the story! And the great reveal behind Shizuo's past! At least one of them ahaha. There's going to be more! I hope everyone's excited? Thank you for reading and reviewing!


	23. Chapter 23

**Title:** Blood Contract  
 **Rating:** M  
 **Pairing:** Shizuo x Izaya  
 **Prompt : HALLOWEEN SPECIAL. Vampire Izaya and Priest Shizuo story! This is an AU story!**

 **Disclaimer:** I own none of these characters!

_THIS STORY CONTAINS MALExMALE RELATIONSHIPS. You have been warned._

* * *

The legend said that he was stronger than an army of humans and vampires combined.

The legend said that he was an angel sent from God to eradicate all evil.

Legends were rarely faced with reality and when they do, the truth was a lot scarier than the legends themselves.

And that said 'legend' was right now in the heart of the kingdom of his enemies, completely surrounded in their court, standing in front of their 'king,' with his one and only 'partner' he had thought he could trust, but who seemed to have betrayed him by revealing this 'great secret', which he himself had not known. Was it even true?

However the plan always was to go along with Izaya right? Even if it looked like Izaya was throwing him to the wolves to be eaten alive, Izaya wouldn't truly abandon him...right?

Shizuo swallowed hard, trying to take it all in as the chaos broke once more. Everyone was shouting orders, some screaming "TRAITOR!" to "KILL HIM! KILL HIM!" and of course, "MURDERER!" amongst all sorts of insults and terrified blood curdling cries from the masses. At this point, Shizuo wasn't sure if this court wanted him killed or Izaya or both. Thinking about it, probably both. And somewhere among them was, "Order! I say order in the court!"

There was a huge confusion among the guards too. They had them surrounded, several of them still scared to approach since they had totally witnessed some of their men swung and thrown to a wall like small pebbles on a sling.

The worst part of all this was that there were two people who were completely calm to the chaos around them. One was obviously Izaya with a smug grin that spoke volumes to how much he had expected this or perhaps even planned this all along. But the other was that small child king with an inappropriately benign smile.

Finally, _finally_ the court calmed down enough for Aoba's voice to be heard. There were still plenty of angry and low mutterings but the soldiers had made a ring around Izaya and Shizuo, their long spears pointing at them as if that would somehow contain this monster. Shizuo just sighed and waited for Izaya's next move, hoping somehow this would lead to something. And that Izaya didn't betray him. Granted… if Izaya wanted to betray him, he'd had plenty of chances previously, so Shizuo decided once again to believe in him despite that small nagging voice in the corner that made him still anxious.

"Now then. Orihara-san." Aoba's frustration was clear in his flat tone as he glared down at them. "Alright, so he's… the Saint Mikaela as you've proposed. How do you proceed to explain…" Aoba started to search for the word to describe this peculiar predicament they were in as he waved his hand in the air. " _This_?"

"There's nothing to really explain." Izaya shrugged nonchalantly.. "I wanted to complete my investigation before presenting him but our Lady Earthworm ruined that. But he is here. And I have now…"

"Wait." Aoba stopped him. "Not so fast. So you knew he was a Saint, a dangerous one at that and you brought him here?!"

"Well, _I wasn't_ the one who brought him here clearly." Izaya rolled his eyes, knowing that this young Blue Squares General grasping straws, trying his best to pin treason on him. "That's Lady Earthworm's…"

"But you _planned_ to bring him here eventually. The Saint that almost destroyed our entire race! And now he is right in front of our king, armed!" Aoba looked triumphant as his hand turned into a victorious fist. "This is treason! Both should be executed."

Izaya rolled his eyes as the soldiers took one step closer… except it was more like a half an inch and all of them were too scared to move any closer than the next. The way Izaya looked so relaxed made Shizuo take another breath that he didn't realize he was holding. It seemed Izaya had a plan. So far they were somehow all alive.

"First of all, you have no authority over me to order an execution."

Aoba's eyes narrowed to glare daggers at Izaya before turning to the king who looked back at him and smiled.

"Oh come now, Aoba-kun. He seems harmless enough."

"But Your Majesty! He is clearly… THEY are clearly a threat!" Aoba thrust his arm at them, which Shizuo didn't like. However, it was the sight of the boy king smiling sweetly that sent a chill down Shizuo's back. He couldn't be that stupid. This wasn't a puppet king...right? The fact that this boy didn't seem to mind didn't make sense.

"Well Orihara-san?" Mikado turned to look at the Earl with a mysterious smile. "Is he safe?"

"He is, Your Majesty." Izaya bowed gracefully with a sweeping arch. Shizuo stood still feeling awkward and out of place. Was he safe? Shizuo wasn't even sure of the answer to that question and it was regarding himself.

"Prove it." The boy king's smile widened an inch, which made it more creepier than it should.

"Alright." Izaya graciously lifted his arms as if he was helpless to such a demand. "Please order the soldiers to kill me."

There was a stunned silence that washed over the crowd as Shizuo's mind grew white like a blank slate. Did he just say…?

"E-excuse me?" Aoba asked as if he too was in disbelief just like the rest of the court save for the two people.

Shizuo thought, perhaps he misheard it. But no. Izaya shrugged with that insufferable nonchalant attitude that seemed to be universally hated, not just by Shizuo. "I said, go ahead and order your soldiers to kill me." Izaya then took a step back to line up almost next to Shizuo as he caressed the blond hunter's chin like a pet puppy. "You see, Lady Earthworm was half right. He is tamed. But only by me."

Then he turned to face Shizuo, his eyes turning flinty before he grabbed Shizuo by the back of his head and slammed his face to the floor. "Heel, dog, before His Majesty."

Shizuo's face slammed against the marbled floor, his eyes clearly bewildered but no one could see them currently, not with his face to the floor. Then he felt the boot pressing his head to the floor even harder. The weight of Izaya unmistakably showing that he wasn't joking around and his heart sank to the pit of his stomach in confusion and dread. If Izaya was acting, this was convincing Shizuo as well. His heart was pounding fast as he didn't know what to do… or what Izaya was planning to do next. Izaya had him and the entire court spellbound.

"See? Not a scratch. He behaves perr~fectly fine." Izaya smirked as his boot grinded Shizuo's face to the floor. "So, if you ordered to kill me now, do you think he'll defend me despite this treatment? Shall we find out?"

His confidence confused the court. It certainly confused the head General of the Dollar's military as he hesitated only briefly, turning to seek approval from his king who gave him the nod. Then he barked his order in a loud boom, "KILL HIM!"

Izaya stood still with a grin, his foot still on Shizuo's head and his arms folded, waiting. Shizuo watched in panic as the soldiers hesitated a second but knowing they had to follow their orders, charged. In a few seconds, Izaya would be skewered by at least thirty lances and spears. It only took two fearful breaths, waiting and desperately hoping Izaya would do something before the hunter got up, gripped his golden cross tightly as he swung it 360° while Izaya stood still smiling as if it was just a light spring breeze. The soldiers fell like dominos before the archers up top started to shower the middle with their arrows.

Grabbing Izaya, Shizuo held him close to protect him from any stray arrows then he threw the cross in the air, the gravity spell unleashed. The entire court was screaming as they crumbled to the floor, watching in horror as the monster Saint in front of them demonstrated his full power. Izaya stayed still, realizing that the spell wasn't working on him since the hunter was holding him, or perhaps he was directly under it, he wasn't certain. Shizuo wasn't sure how strong of a spell he needed to press down the entire court of vampire soldiers, so he went ahead and gave them a full blast. Later it was known that the scale was so large, all the citizens in the entire four mountains were crushed under the pressure of the cross, clearly displaying that this truly was the same weapon from almost eight hundred years ago that Saint Mikaela had used to demolish armies of vampires.

It was the sound of the clapping that made the hunter cease his spell. Shizuo's heart was struck with genuine fear as he held Izaya close to him when he noticed the horror beyond his own nightmares. Everyone but the boy king was affected by the spell as he sat on his throne and clapped pleasantly like a boy who just saw a cute magic trick. And this was Shizuo's strongest magic at it's max power.

"Bravo. Wonderful. Fantastic." Mikado smiled as he now leaned on one arm. "I suppose it is safe to say he is tamed?"

"Yes, Your Majesty." Izaya gently removed himself from stunned Shizuo's embrace and once again bowed deeply to his king. Shizuo however did not bow or get on his knees as he should in front of a king. Even though he knew he should, he froze, still trying to process the fact that his greatest magic power did not work on someone. He knew that this gravity spell was stronger than his own punch. He had never felt so stripped of his own power and helpless since his strength was the one thing he could always rely on.

"And?" The boy king crossed his legs casually. "What now? Should I accept your gift and throw him into the pot of wine and drink his blood?"

Shizuo swallowed hard. Izaya wouldn't … do that… would he?

"Whatever you wish to do, Your Majesty. He is my gift to you." Izaya kept his head lowered. At this angle, Shizuo couldn't tell anymore what was going on. Was Izaya giving him to this boy? This vampire king of his enemies? Would Izaya go that far for acting or was this a trap Shizuo had walked into? Shizuo did not know what he should do but he closed his eyes and took a deep breath before letting it out slowly. In that moment, he decided to continue to believe and trust in Izaya. Whatever sealed his fate, he would just face it head-on.

He heard the boy king's merry laugh that was very out of place.

"Anything? Really?" was his blitheful inquiry.

There was no answer, leaving it completely open for the young king's whim. Mikado seemed to stare into a random spot on the far upper right of his court, pondering what to do with the fate of his nation's greatest threat at his disposal.

"If you have him completely tamed then for now I'll assume he's safe."

"But Your Majesty!" Aoba protested but Mikado raised his hand.

"For now, let's keep him. He might be more useful alive than dead. We can start off with any information he knows about the headquarters and training of the vampire hunters as well as their current arsenal of weapons and military might… then move on to see if we can use him in our military ranks."

Izaya nodded and bowed deeply on his knees.

"You're dismissed."

* * *

Shizuo felt uncomfortable wearing the vampire's noble class garments.

After the crazy session at the court, he thought he could have a private moment with Izaya but no. The maids had promptly grabbed him and ushered him away, separating him from the vampire he had literally walked into the heart of his enemies to meet. The head matron was a woman of quite stature, built like an ox with a no 'funny business' attitude. She took one look at the confused hunter up and down like she was analyzing and judging his horrible attire and told him sharply, "Strip." Shizuo froze with a stupefied look which only seemed to frustrate the woman. She rolled her eyes and she and the others started to tug off the trench coat to the protest of the young hunter, who had never been naked in front of anyone save for perhaps Vorona who came to pick up his laundry in the morning and saw him partially undressed, but still! He was never down to his last undergarments!

When they got to the point they tried to take off the pouch around Shizuo's neck that Kujiragi had given him, the hunter grabbed it first and held onto it before they hurt themselves. That was when he realized they weren't vampires. Upon closer inspection they had rounded ears, not pointy ones. They were all… human.

It was bewildering to actually see human among the society of vampires but finally the women led him to the baths. When they got the heavy duty looking brushes, Shizuo _insisted_ he could wash himself. Once alone, he carefully placed the small satchel away from the water, on top of a small wooden table against the wall. He then started to soak in the beautifully carved clawfoot tub, though the ornaments were lost to the mundane hunter. The water pooled up and overflowed as Shizuo sank in deeper, sighing at the warm water that rose to his chest. Just relaxing in the large tub washed away all the mental exhaustion as well as the dirt from the travels in the cage; it felt heavenly. Not only that but he needed some time to take it all in and absorb what had occurred in that court room.

Everything had moved so fast. Did Izaya truly betray him? Or did he know that the king wouldn't… eat him? Or turn him into some wine, to be exact. Shizuo sighed heavily. He wanted to trust Izaya. He truly did. But this trial… he was making it really hard for the hunter to have complete faith in him. However the irony wasn't lost to Shizuo. Back several months ago, Shizuo had to convince in front of the Hunters Association and Shiki that Izaya was 'his vampire' and that he was 'tamed.' It was the exact same trick that Izaya had used now in front of the court of vampires. That this hunter was his 'pet'. And that he was 'tamed.' It made Shizuo have at least a small amount of faith in him.

And that vampire king. He was a monster of another category. Shizuo shuddered despite the warm water. The power of his cross had no effect on him. If that did not work, Shizuo wasn't sure what could take him down.

What would… Saint Mikaela have done back then?

That led to another crazy reality. Himself as the Saint reborn?

He looked over at his cross that was leaned against the wall near the door. It sort of… looked like the one from the stained glass window from the church, he supposed. It didn't really look all that similar though. The ones on the books told of ornate runes inscribed on it. Also the ends were ornate and heavily described with great detail…

This one did have runes, sort of. It was still kind of… plain looking save for the dull gold color. It wasn't brilliantly bright luster gold like they said in the books though.

Then if… IF he really was the Saint Mikaela…

Shizuo groaned at that thought alone. That was crazy. Just absolutely insane! Even if he was, he had no memory of his supposed glorious past. Wasn't Saint Mikaela the hero who died in some great war like seven or eight hundred years ago? Shizuo didn't really remember details since history was never his best subject. Mikaela or not, he couldn't care less. One saint was boring just like the other and Shizuo didn't particularly pay any attention.

Still, while soaking in the warm water, Shizuo tried to think back on his history classes with Father Shiki. If he remembered it right, Mikaela was the one who was supposedly in love with Saint Jibril and they both apparently died in some sappy tragic love story. Shizuo never really liked those so he remembered barely passing the exam more than remembering the content. Even so, Shizuo tried to concentrate while soaking into the now-lukewarm water.

Saint Jibril was the saint of healing, Saint Laphael was the saint of magic, a highly skilled sorcerer who rivaled the best of the vampires, while Saint Yuriel was the genius tactician, skilled in the art of war and politics, he was the bridge between the church and the government.

Shizuo struggled to remember but couldn't really muster much other then that Saint Mikaela was some great hero and that he had some sort of illicit love relationship with another Saint who happened to be like the most beautiful and kind woman who died sacrificing herself to save the castle. Saint Mikaela was known for his supernatural powers and being a military genius. He could take out a small army of vampires all by himself. But according to the history books, his ultimate downfall was his ultimate devotion to Saint Jibril. Knowing his weakness, the vampires had taken the castle to capture Saint Jibril and she was condemned for eternity with one of the strongest vampire curses.

It was such a cliche and boring fairytale told to kids in bedtime. Even if he had not gone to hunter's association school, he knew most of the story from his mother telling it to him in a story book. He had always asked his mother to repeat the stories of his exploits in battles and skip the love story parts.

So instead of thinking of what he learned through that boring monotone voice of Father Shiki, he started to concentrate on the image of his mother. She would tuck him and his brother Kasuka to bed and take out a story book. Back then, Shizuo did like stories of heroes and Mikaela was one of them. She would smile as she re-read the story of Mikaela's many battles. Shizuo concentrated harder and he couldn't really remember her ever getting to the end of the story except once. Once she read them the ending and he remembered he and his brother both cried. Ever since then, their mother would always read excerpts of many great battles but never got to the ending again.

Shizuo thought that he must have cried after the story ended with Mikaela's death because his hero had died or that there were no more new stories for him. But no. Perhaps something else deeper had triggered him to cry.

"I think… the curse was that she couldn't be reborn…" Shizuo frowned, tilting his head as it started to come back to him. Yes, that was it. Saint Jibril had gone to visit the city that was recovering from the war. She was healing the villagers and city dwellers all alike when the vampires launched a surprise attack. Knowing that the vampires had came to capture her, she decided to be the bait while everyone escaped through the hidden underground passage beneath the castle. Saint Jibril's ability to heal was seen more as witchcraft instead of God's blessing among the vampires. Hating witches, she was burnt on a stake and cursed so that she could not use her 'wicked' powers to return to life. Upon hearing the capture of his beloved, Saint Mikaela rushed to save her but it was too late. It was a trap and Saint Mikaela was finally taken down in that one last stand, him versus the entire army comprised of every vampire faction.

"Well, I guess that can explain why I have zero interest in romance." Shizuo grumbled though he doubted his own words. He was pretty sure that wasn't really why.

He was just scared to hurt someone since he couldn't absolutely control his supernatural power. But if he was truly a reincarnation of a Saint with the same ability, it made sense that he was born with this power.

Humans feared this strength and theories had been recorded that he must have been part vampire to gain such supernatural ability. It was of course, a ridiculous idea. Saint Mikaela was clearly human, all the holy books explained that part in great detail, trying to put down the conspiracy theory. And as Izaya had mentioned, a half vampire and half human could never be as strong as a full vampire. Which meant… Saint Mikaela's strength couldn't have been from being a partial vampire which only solidified the church's belief that it was a god given-gift, thus giving him the title of 'Saint.

Things sort of fit, but not really. Not quite yet. It didn't really explain Izaya's behavior at the court where he seemed to have betrayed him. At least, not to Shizuo.

Sitting here in the tub didn't give him answers. So once he washed up, he went ahead and wore the undergarments that the ladies had laid out for him.

To Shizuo's dismay, this was just one garment out of many. Once he stepped outside, there was a full arsenal of matrons who gave him a flat look that said 'You're not going anywhere until we're done with you'. Shizuo cringed as all of them each held up a different kind of fabric that made no sense to him. There were two types of pants, one that was skin tight stockings and then another that was baggy on top. Then a linen long-sleeved shirt, a tunic, a vest, a jacket, a coat and then a half cape, each and every one of them ornate with intricate embroidered designs. What confused Shizuo the most was that MOST of these embroidery were hidden underneath the layers and layers of clothes. Only a small piece was shown with each layer, sometimes just a collar or part of the sleeves. Shizuo didn't understand what was the point of making such a beautiful silk only to have it hidden mostly on top of all these layers. Some of the strings and buttons were at the back of his clothing, which would make it difficult for Shizuo to dress or even undress himself without help. Shizuo really had no idea why vampires made things so complicated or perhaps human noble's clothings were just as intricate and he just didn't know. Regardless, he sighed and put up with the fusses of the women putting it on him.

It was a type of sophistication lost to the mind of this simple hunter.

Finally clean and wearing the wardrobe of a vampire, he looked like one of them. He wore his stringed pouch back around his neck, tucking it inside the tunic to hide it. It wasn't a big deal if someone saw him wearing it, but he was pretty sure the vampires wouldn't be happy he had it and less questions would be asked if it was not visible.

He was still allowed to wear the cross behind his back, which surprised Shizuo. Then again, no vampire could touch it and he was sure that his display of power proved that no one could stand in his way with or without it. And no sane vampire probably wanted to be between him and the cross if Shizuo wanted it back. After proving that he was a loyal dog to one of their nobles, the vampires and the humans of the Dollars didn't try to keep him in chains at least.

Shizuo was led down the hallway where Kadota was waiting. Shizuo blinked as he noticed that the particular embroidery that was on his garment was also on Kadota's, and it wasn't the design that was on any of the maids, guards or the other vampires that he had passed by. Normally the hunter doesn't pay deep attention to such details but he did notice this time due to the complexity of the garment he was forced to wear and he had to stare at it for an hour as the maids tied it onto him.

"Ah, good to see you," the vampire greeted him lightly.

Shizuo raised one eyebrow. Kadota chuckled at that. "You know what I mean."

The hunter grunted in reply. Kadota waved his hand to dismiss the guards who bowed promptly and left. Shizuo watched, impressed. So this guy really was some higher up in the Dollars…

"I'll take you to see Izaya," Kadota explained as he now led the way down the hallway. Shizuo was grateful that Kadota didn't make him say the words himself and knew right away where he wanted to go.

The walk was in silence, which made Shizuo even more grateful. When they turned around the corridor that lead to Izaya's wing, Kadota spoke in small voice, "I… want to apologize."

"...What for?" Shizuo asked cautiously. He wasn't sure what Kadota had done that he should be wary of all of a sudden if he was apologizing.

Kadota chuckled softly. "Because I didn't trust you."

Shizuo didn't understand since it should be natural a vampire shouldn't trust a hunter that happened to be under contract with his liege.

"What I meant is…" Kadota tried to further explain but paused. Then he said, "Izaya… hadn't drank anything since…"

"I know." Shizuo answered automatically then paused, briefly wondering if he should have answered that. Well it was too late now so he added grimly, "That's why I'm here."

"...Thank you for that." Kadota seemed to calmly accept what he must have known for awhile.

Shizuo didn't reply since it wasn't necessary.

Once they got to the massive double doors, Kadota paused hesitantly. Shizuo waited patiently, knowing that the vampire must have one more thing to say to him.

"Shizuo… did…"

Another pause.

"Did… Izaya have nightmares while he was with you?"

Shizuo frowned at that. Did he? He couldn't remember, save for maybe that one time he was badly burned…?

"Not… usually. Why? Is he having them often?"

Kadota didn't answer but his face looked concerned. He couldn't disclose to this hunter that Izaya was barely sleeping due to nightmares and when he did sleep, he always had nightmares. He wasn't sure how much his liege actually shared his personal vulnerabilities with this hunter since… Izaya wasn't exactly someone who shared any of his weaknesses with anyone, even Kadota who was the closest to being his best friend...or so Kadota had hoped at one point in their relationship.

"I just ask… that please... take care of him." Kadot asked genuinely, like a friend asking another.

"I plan to." Shizuo nodded with determination. Kadota saw that and nodded back grimly. Then he knocked on the door to announce their arrival and opened the door for Shizuo.

Once the hunter walked in, Kadota closed the door behind him, giving them their long earned privacy.

Shizuo swallowed at the scene before him. The spacious room, ornately decorated with colorful tapestries and large rug, the canopy bed with soft curtains… and there was the lone vampire in crimson and black silk, gazing out near the opened balcony with the pale beam of the moon delicately lighting his silhouette. It was a breathtaking moment like a moment captured in a painting.

The hunter took few steps closer and stopped when the vampire turned to face him. Izaya's eyes were flashing red in anger. Deep anger, the type Shizuo knew by now, he needed to tread carefully.

"You degenerate, poor excuse of a human," he hissed lowly as he slammed the large french door leading to the balcony behind him closed and grabbed the edge of the curtain and drew it half closed before turning to face the hunter. He barged forward as if he was about to punch Shizuo but stopped, gritting his teeth and closing his eyes as he barely contained his sanity.

"Why in all seven hells did you decide to come _here_ , after I've painstakingly…! After I had…!" Izaya let out a deep breath, unable to contain it after all. He swallowed and rubbed his face with one gloved hand. Then Shizuo noticed again the embroidery. Izaya too was wearing the same lavish clothing of a noble… with the signet of a noble family embroidered in gold, silver and red.

...If Shizuo's guess was right, it was probably a signet of the Orihara family. Despite facing Izaya at the epitome of his anger, it softened his heart that he was given the outfit of Izaya's family.

While Izaya was quivering with uncontainable rage, Shizuo carefully searched and found the runed dagger he was also allowed to carry. He pulled it out and placed the blade on the tip of his finger, not yet slicing it open.

"I...came to feed you. That's all." Shizuo said quietly in an apologetic voice. He didn't know it would cause this much trouble. Well, he knew something would happen, but he had thought it would be a straight out brawl where he just walks in, fights his way through the crowd, grabs Izaya, and runs out. Kujiragi had at least prepared him for some of the possibilities that might unfold but it...wasn't like this. Not at all what Shizuo had planned. Still, Shizuo would cross all seven hells to reach Izaya just to feed him one drop of blood he knew he was thirsty for, the only blood that Izaya could drink.

"Should I… cut my tongue instead?" Shizuo asked hesitantly, remembering that the vampires have keen sense of smell and he knew Izaya didn't like others knowing that he was drinking blood. He was more concerned about feeding Izaya than the pressing issue at hand.

"I…! NO! What do you think you're DOING?!" Izaya hissed in small voice and grabbed Shizuo's wrist, pulling it away. "You vertebrae feces for brains! You don't have a speck of a clue what you've done do you, you insufferable piece of...!"

In low voice, probably so no vampires nearby would be able to eavesdrop, Izaya unleashed a string of insults, half of which Shizuo had no idea what they meant. Shizuo carefully placed his dagger back, not getting angry at Izaya's spew of threats and curses. Then to Izaya's surprise, the blond hugged him, giving him a warm squeeze and stunning him into a brief silence.

"I'm sorry. I know… I'm a failure."

"..."

For a bit Izaya doesn't do anything except quiver. At first Shizuo thought that it was due to uncontainable fury until he heard Izaya's voice break.

"You idiot. I can't… I can't protect you here. I didn't… I didn't want to…" There was a heavy stuttering sigh mixed with a small choke from Izaya that made Shizuo's heart tighten. His arms held the vampire even closer to him as Shizuo closed his eyes. He could feel a tiny teardrop fall down Izaya's cheeks and roll down next to Shizuo's neck where they were joined.

"I'm sorry." He apologized again, holding the man close, wishing he could wipe away the tear wetting his neck right now and make everything that hurt him disappear. But he knew he never could. He always failed at protecting this man it seemed. He always ended up hurting him one way or the other. And he felt horribly sick at ever doubting him earlier at the court since Shizuo now realized that Izaya had just as much to lose as he did if Shizuo had not trusted him. Had the hunter decided that Izaya had indeed betrayed him and not followed his plan...but Izaya trusted him to go along with the plan without even consulting with him. Shizuo felt foolish that his faith had even wavered. "I'm sorry Izaya. I just… I just wanted to come and feed you."

"You fool… you… stupid, stupid fool…" Izaya gasped as another tear rolled down his cheek and smeared against Shizuo's neck. "I didn't...want them to find out. I didn't… want them to find out this way… but I had no choice. No other cards to deal…. to protect you from them."

"...Yeah." Shizuo didn't quite understand, but he also did. Izaya was brilliant. He probably had thought of a hundred possibilities of escape once he realized Shizuo was here, captured, and in front of his enemies. And this probably had the highest probability of succeeding, and technically it did.

They were still both alive. And together. With a sacrifice, a truth Shizuo wasn't sure how to face, and the unknown consequences that such knowledge could hold in the future.

However, seeing Mikado's unfazed reaction, Izaya probably made the right choice. Somehow… Mikado had probably known that Shizuo's true identity was a Saint. Which then lead to several unanswered questions Shizuo didn't understand. If… Mikado had known, why had he not just killed him?

Clearly Izaya knew more about Mikado's nature than others. And known that by revealing Shizuo in public, Mikado would most likely spare him for other uses.

"I'm sorry Izaya… and thank you." Shizuo leaned his head against the raven's, keeping his eyes closed as he could feel Izaya's beating heart next to his. A rhythm he had missed so much even though it had only been a few weeks since they'd been apart. Despite everything, Shizuo was glad he had decided to trust Izaya after all.

"It's not alright, th-they will!" Izaya started again but Shizuo slightly pulled away to stare down into Izaya's eyes. He wasn't angry anymore. There was something else wavering between the tears. Anxiety? Fear? Uncertainty? It didn't matter. The hunter lightly fingered the quivering lips and saw the pale skin. He looked thinner too. Shizuo waited to see if there was any rejection as he inched closer… and once he saw that Izaya didn't resist, he then closed his eyes and kissed him tenderly.

It was not like the time he covered him from speaking nor like the other time where he was just feeding him. Just a gentle caress of their lips, soft as a daisy, the type where the small brush of their lips was enough for their warmth to travel to another. It sent a current through them, their entire bodies trembling at that one small point where their lips touched so briefly; after they had joined many times before. But this one wasn't like the others. Shizuo could feel it and he knew that Izaya could too. After Izaya did not reject him, Shizuo leaned forward again for something further, his one hand wrapping around the vampire's slim back while the other fingered through the silky hair on the back of his head. He deepened the kiss with a hint of sucking on the lower lip before kissing him again tenderly, wanting to take away the pain with just that touch alone.

The vampire had frozen up at first but started to return the affection, a small sucking… a hint of tongue here and there. The kisses came in small gentle waves at first, between the stuttering breaths mingling between them. Izaya's hand laid on top of priest's shoulder, hesitant and shy. Their lips met falteringly in-between, insecure of a future between a vampire and a human hunter and uncertain if they should even continue further until they stepped over the edge.

After only few joined touches of their lips, Izaya parted, his eyes full of conflict. "Shizu-chan, I…"

"Shh…" Shizuo cupped Izaya's head preciously and kissed him softly on his lips again.

"We shouldn't…" the vampire pulled back an inch, their lips just a breath away.

"I know." Shizuo pulled him closer while taking a step forward towards the bed. "But do you want to?"

"..." Izaya wasn't sure. This wasn't the time. Or place. This was the worst time and place, in fact, to start 'this.' His brain told him he needed to stop but his heart...his heart...couldn't decide. He was torn. "I don't think… right now, Shizu-chan." Izaya frowned briefly, that wasn't… what he should say. He should say no but...

However, Shizuo agreed with a small nod. "Let me at least feed you." The the hunter picked him up carefully and carried him to the bed before setting him down on the plump feather mattress. Izaya stared into Shizuo's warm brown eyes, always willing to give and always willing to shield him. He couldn't believe this man had literally walked into the greatest vampire clan in history, right into the heart of the court just to feed him a drop of blood. Izaya bit his lower lip as Shizuo carefully watched, waiting for consent.

When Izaya closed his eyes and sighed, he nodded shortly. Only then did Shizuo take out his dagger again to cut a small slit on his tongue.

The scent of blood was briefly in the air before Shizuo closed his mouth but it was enough. Izaya's body immediately reacted to hunger, the rush of his blood boiling in his veins as his eyes turned bright with thirst. Shizuo smiled gently at Izaya's tremble as he clutched onto blond's shoulder, trying his best to hold back his blood lust.

"Glad to see that you still want me after all, flea." Shizuo chuckled softly as he jested, using a petname he hadn't used on Izaya in a long time. The blond welcomed the hot kiss that followed as the vampire lunged for him with feverish thirst.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author’s Note: so to those who follow my tumblr, you already know this… but in July 2016, I was let go of my job because my boss retired. Ever since I got this new job and it’s… insanely difficult and stressful so I don’t have much time to write fics anymore. I haven’t given up. It’s just… less free time now to do anything fun, i’m barely on tumblr or online. I’m so sorry that each chapters take more than a month, I will try to finish it. It’s just a huge struggle ;_;
> 
> Anyways, Happy Valentine's Day! I hope we all celebrate our OTP with love today!!


	24. Chapter 24

“Nnngh…mmngh…. _haaa…._ ”

A deep sigh of pleasure along with more lewd slurping followed. The rush of blood as he bit deeper, the adrenaline that ignited within him like a buried ember that was gaining momentum with each passion. He could hear his heartbeat pound harder and harder with each suck, a moan between each lick.

“I missed you flea…”

Izaya shivered at the low timbre that vibrated through his very being. He didn’t know how long he drank but enough and more. And it was only due to Shizuo’s fast healing ability that the blood had long since stopped flowing from his tongue but he continued to suckle and enjoy the sensation of falling into an abyss he didn’t want to climb out of. He needed this reason to continue.

“‘Zaya…”

The vampire shuddered at his name being called in a soft whisper, like a lover’s kiss into his ear. He was also unsure of how he felt about the evolution of his nickname.  Somewhere between awareness and oblivion he felt himself being gently pushed down to the silky bed sheets and pushed upwards so that instead of his legs dangling, his feet were mostly on the bed.

“S-Shizu…” Izaya wasted no more breath before his lips latched onto him once more, trying to drink and fill himself with the sweet, warm essence.

“‘Zaya wait… I… might have to re-cut my tongue.” Shizuo huffed as he lifted his head an inch away, struggling. He himself didn’t want to break this but he realized that his own tongue healed too fast and there wasn’t enough blood flowing anymore.

He looked down at the beautiful picture Izaya made. He was mussed and his hair tousled lightly. It made Shizuo’s heart skip a beat, for a second forgetting where he put his dagger as his hands froze while his eyes gazed, forever wanting to embed in his memory of that flushed cheeks with ruby eyes still thirsty and yearning for him.

Shizuo swallowed hard, uncertain what to do when…

They both felt it. Their hardness being brushed together between their legs.

The hunter’s first reaction was to look down and pause. Then he chuckled, realizing that the vampire too could actually grow aroused. He knew it should but he had never truly seen Izaya’s body be affected.

Izaya’s reaction was highly the opposite. He was mortified.

“I… wait. L-let’s…not.” The vampire tried to get up in panic, using one of his elbow as his leverage while he used one hand to push away Shizuo’s chest, trying to pull himself out of this situation.

“No. Wait.” Shizuo lightly placed his hand on top of Izaya’s that was on his chest. “Wait.”

The vampire watched when Shizuo then turned his hand towards the blond and Izaya’s heart stopped the moment the hunter kissed the inside of his wrist.

Izaya started to breathe harder as his heart started to hurt. They shouldn’t be doing this...they shouldn’t be….

However, Izaya couldn’t pull his wrist away or even look away as he continued to stare at this man slowly kiss each of his fingers one by one, as if he was appreciating each delicate feature of that pale hand.

“Does this feel good?"

“W-what?”

Izaya broke away from his hypnotized fixation to focus on the blond’s warm chocolate eyes.

“Does _‘this’…_ feel good?” The hunter emphasized as he lightly licked Izaya’s index fingertip.

The vampire didn’t know who was charming who at this point. Did this hunter even know what he was doing?

“S-s…” The vampire stammered, confused. His mind continued to scream that he needed to stop him from going further. But his heart was pounding so fast it was blocking everything.

Yes, it did feel good. And yes, he wanted more.

But no he shouldn’t want it. And no, he mustn’t have it. They shouldn’t continue.

They shouldn’t  _continue_.

“S-Shiz…” Izaya tried again but his tongue froze and he couldn’t even speak another word. He just wanted to watch this man kiss his finger one more time.

“How...can I make you feel even better?” Shizuo’s eyes slightly lowered with concern, gazing directly into Izaya’s heart.

The question exploded inside Izaya’s mind.

“H-how…?”

Izaya felt as if he was a newborn babe who was barely learning to pronounce the sound they were trying to repeat back.

“Well…” Shizuo lowered his eyes and his cheeks flushed a bit demurely even if it was possible for this dumb blond brute to look like an overgrown puppy. “I… don’t know how to… you know. Other than…”

Izaya did not understand his sentence at all. He blinked dumbfounded, and completely confused as to why the blond stopped kissing his fingers.

“W-well what I’m trying to express is….” Shizuo swallowed hard and Izaya held his breath.

“How...do I...make your…’ _thing_ ’ go away.”

“W-wh…” Izaya followed the blond’s gaze and stared down, trying to decipher what he was seeing when…

The vampire froze when the brain’s signal finally broke through the clouded mind.

“Waaah!!” His immediate reaction was to try to shove Shizuo away but he couldn’t. Instead he was pushed back a bit further into the bed but only an inch, as the hunter was still holding onto his wrist and Shizuo was like an immovable rock.

“Ah, wait. No, Izaya!” Shizuo took a step forward before Izaya completely moved away from him but also not wanting to hurt him by accident. “Wait, I didn’t mean…! No, what I meant was…!”

They both stared at each other silently for a few hard breaths, which felt like years, trying to communicate through their own flustered eyes.

“What I meant was…” Shizuo tried again, still not letting go of that wrist in which he could feel how fast Izaya’s heart was beating. He knew that he had scared Izaya just now. And that was the last thing Shizuo had wanted. “I was...always told that…” This was more difficult for Shizuo than the vampire probably knew. But Izaya had not interrupted him so the hunter continued.

“When I was...younger. And when I was a teen...I…” Shizuo closed his eyes and bit his lips a bit. This felt like a torture for him. “Once I confessed that I wake up with it. Dreams. They told me if it happened, I shouldn’t...touch myself but I should just take a cold shower.”

Izaya blinked as it slowly dawned on him what Shizuo was trying to say. And he remembered all those morning where Shizuo would be sleeping next to him with a big boner… and those few times that Izaya had teasingly played with him. Each time Shizuo would curse and rush to the shower room but honestly, Izaya had thought the man was masturbating in there, not just pouring shockingly cold ice water to cool himself down and will his boner away.

The vampire almost pitied the man as he bit his own lower lip. He himself doesn’t particularly enjoy ice cold showers so having to only know a celibate life sounded…

But Shizuo wasn’t done. He looked back up at Izaya with a strange conviction. “The dreams, Izaya. I never told even the priests at the confession stand. Because  I knew if I did, they would probably think I would need to be exorcised or something.”

“I thought it was your charm.” He continued as Izaya listened, who was still slightly perplexed. “But I learned in school that vampire’s charms only last a day at most. It shouldn’t have...lasted a year. Or even two to three years. Or...five.”

“....You…” Izaya’s eyes widened slowly.  
  
“I dream of you, Izaya.” Shizuo admitted. “I dreamt of you ever since I’ve met you. And you…! You wouldn’t...leave me alone. At first, yes. I thought they were like nightmares, you with your ruby eyes staring down at me. With your smile trying to reassure me before you bit me. But now I know it wasn’t….a nightmare.” The blond shifted his position slowly to get closer to Izaya without making him feel claustrophobic.

“I wasn’t sure if...you were somehow charming me from that basement but I also found out that wouldn’t be possible without eye contact.” Shizuo was still giving Izaya his space yet cautiously approaching closer. Izaya wasn’t sure why he was holding his breath but he knew deep inside that it was because he wasn’t sure what was at the end of this confession and if he would want to tumble down that rabbit hole with this man.

“So...you’re telling me…” Izaya approached the subject with as much sensitivity as the blond had given him. “You… have wet dreams about me.”

He watched in awe as this big blond brute, the scary legend among legend, blushed brightly and gave a short nod like a young boy who just got caught with wet blankets.

Izaya couldn’t help but cover his mouth with his one free hand.

“For...how long?” Izaya couldn’t help but ask after an awkward hush that was few seconds too long.

“....” The even longer silence indicated how humiliating this was for Shizuo before he replied, “Since probably I was...able to.”

Izaya couldn’t help it. He felt a small smile escape from his lips behind the hidden cover.

“I’m not... that interested in children, _in_ _that way_  you know.”

“Sure, is that why you decided to bite me?” Shizuo accused.

Izaya couldn’t help but let out a peal of laughter at that bushy furrowed eyebrows with disparaging archs. “Well I was hurt and I needed to replenish my blood, it wasn’t like I had much choice, given the…”

Then the vampire froze. And Shizuo saw it in Izaya’s eyes as the smiles suddenly washed away and they were hit with the cold reality of ‘that night’.

“I… Shizu. W-we shouldn’t.” Izaya flinched away from Shizuo’s eyes.  And then it clicked for the hunter as if all the pieces were falling into place. He understood why the vampire was hesitant to go further even if he may have enjoyed it.

It was that Izaya couldn’t allow himself to enjoy it. The guilt was there in those eyes.  But it was because it was there Shizuo pressed on. “No. We should.”

“No, we sh-.” Izaya tried again but this time the hunter cut him off.

“Izaya, it’s okay. I forgive you.”

Shizuo knew this was probably not the right time to say it or the right place. He had wanted to tell him at a more appropriate place or perhaps when they were further along in the relationship where they could trust each other better. But he couldn’t wait any longer. He could see it in Izaya’s eyes that the guilt had been eating at him, which was something he should have suspected but was never certain. The vampire was so good at hiding his deeper emotions so well that Shizuo was never sure that Izaya had felt guilty regarding ‘that night.’ But tonight, Izaya was more honest than he had ever been and if Shizuo had missed this chance, he wasn’t sure when would be the next time he could tell him.

“I forgive you.” He repeated firmly, still holding onto Izaya’s hand, not letting him go.

There were a mixture of emotions in Izaya’s eyes then it overflowed.

“ _How_?”

He asked in such a despairing manner that it tugged at Shizuo’s heart how much this vampire must have suffered alone with such burden all these years. As an apprentice priest as well as a hunter, he had also undergone some training to be compassionate priest, to deliver blessings and forgiveness while trying to understand and comfort sinners. Therefore, he could see beyond layers that Izaya had held in front of him as the shield started to deteriorate. He could see the rawness of Izaya’s wounded heart from that one simple question alone. It wasn’t more of a question to Shizuo but as if Izaya himself couldn’t forgive his own crime.

Shizuo knew he could never be a good and beloved priest such as Father Tom but he was glad he grew up in a church and was blessed enough to have some insight.

“Because I can,” Shizuo said as he gathered up Izaya and hugged him, both of them laying on the bed briefly before the blond turned over on the bed so that the vampire wouldn’t be crushed under his weight. Now he looked up at his vampire; ‘ _his vampire_ ,’ and brushed away a tear that was threatening to fall with his thumb.

“Because I can, ‘Zaya.”

“I…” The vampire was at loss for words as his eyes wavered, uncertain where to look. “I don’t...understand.”

“I guess you don’t have to.” Shizuo shrugged. “It’s my choice to forgive you, not yours.”

“But…” Izaya looked back at Shizuo, completely troubled. Then his breath caught as Shizuo kissed a throbbing heartbeat on his throat.

“I don’t care. I forgive you. You should forgive yourself one day, ‘Zaya.”  
  
“Haaa…” Izaya let out a throaty moan as Shizuo’s lips lightly sucked on one of his particularly sensitive spots. “No! Shizuo!” The vampire hissed and then pushed away the blond with force that caught the hunter’s attention.

“You don’t… understand.” Izaya repeated.

Shizuo thought about it and corrected him, “Actually, you said ‘I don’t understand,’ which means y-”

“I KNOW THAT!” Izaya shouted in frustration before he bit his lips in regret. That was not what he wanted to do. He didn’t mean to yell at him like that but it killed him inside to see Shizuo brush away ’this topic’ in such an offhanded manner.

“Alright, you don’t have to forgive yourself today. Or tomorrow.” Shizuo spoke calmly. “All I’m saying is, I’ve forgiven you. And I hope that could be your strength.”

Izaya seemed to have difficulty breathing and taking it all in. Shizuo just wanted to hold him but it seemed the vampire did not want any sort of comfort from him right now.

Orihara Izaya knew that Shizuo did not know the whole truth of that night. He knew and that after all this, he really ‘owed’ this man at least the ‘ _truth_ ’. But he couldn’t even muster the courage to tell him everything despite the fact that this man thought the worst of him and yet had somehow forgiven him. He sat up and covered his face.

“I don’t... understand.” Izaya repeated again, completely unable to move forward.

Shizuo did not understand what was going through the vampire’s mind, only that Izaya was battling his inner self. At least by instinct, he could tell there was more to this than what he was seeing and somehow there was something Izaya was not telling him. But after having been revealed that he was some sort of legendary saint, he wasn’t sure what other ‘secrets’ Izaya could even be hiding that could be even greater.

The hunter carefully sat up and started to unhook his half shoulder cape and then carefully started to divest his outer shell of his clothes.  After taking off his jacket and the vest, he pulled on the strings around his neck to spread open his loose undershirt. It was then Izaya smelled a whiff of something that alerted his mind, snapping him away from his inner turmoil.

“What is that?!”

“Ah, this? Figures you have sharper nose than others.” Shizuo chuckled as he slowly pulled up the drawstring pouch necklace he had hidden. He then placed the pouch at the ledge near the bed and widened the opening to let the scent out. Izaya immediately backed away.

“You didn’t!”

“I did. Somehow Earthworm and the others were unable to detect it but you really do have a keen sense of smell, don’t you.” Shizuo smiled as he moved back to the bed next to Izaya who was looking at him like a viper. “It’s fine, a little wouldn’t hurt you.”

“Yes, but...it’s disgusting.” Izaya bit his lips at the tobacco scent that now flooded the air of his chamber. Tobacco was one of the scents that vampires detested along with garlic as it contaminated the taste of the human’s blood they drank, which was one of the reasons why many hunters smoked while on the job.“Why? You don’t even smoke.”

“I do now. Well, not quite but…” Shizuo couldn’t help but laugh as Izaya looked at him alarmed. He looked absolutely chagrin at the idea of his favorite meal being tainted with such a repugnant taste.  “I use it more like a perfume or a talisman. Don’t worry, I won’t smoke it a lot if you really hate the way I taste. It’s a gift from Kujiragi-san so don’t throw it away behind my back.”

“...” Izaya was putting together in his head that Shizuo must have met Kujiragi possibly through Erika’s intervention. Which then explained how Shizuo would even think to make an elaborate enough of a plan to get captured willingly. Izaya was surprised when he saw Shizuo captured since he had thought that if the blond came for him, he would be charging through the front either by himself or with an army after convincing the church but most likely by himself because that was the kind of person Shizuo was. But what he did not get was, why had Kujiragi supplied him with…

“...Are you having a different dream lately?” Izaya asked cautiously, his mind finally clicking. Shizuo looked surprised and paused from unlacing his shirt.

“Erm...yeah, you can say that.”

“How long? Since when? Who…!” Izaya started to panic. “Did he use charm on you?!”

“Whoa, whoa...calm down, I’m okay. Kujiragi-san caught it in time, I think. I don’t know how long. Sometimes I wake up not remembering my dreams so… I don’t know. And she couldn’t find out who it was since whoever they were, they were…stronger than her, according to Kujiragi-san.”

Izaya stared in disbelief as Shizuo continued, scratching the back of his head in embarrassment. “I don’t think...they used charm on me, yet? At least I don’t thi-uh. Izaya?”

The vampire had grabbed his head with both of his hands and pressed their forehead together. Shizuo looked on as Izaya furrowed his brows in concentration.

“It’s...gone.” Izaya finally said as he carefully opened his eyes and pulled away. Shizuo felt a bit touched at the concern the vampire showed despite their possible strain in their relationship. The hunter was worried that their relationship might change but it seemed that Izaya still placed Shizuo’s safety first even if the vampire didn’t seem to want any closer attachments.

“Looks like Kujiragi-san was very thorough. I’m no-where near as good as her but there’s no trace of the  shadow in you.” Izaya looked a bit relieved and yet upset. “I can’t believe I didn’t notice it myself. You have no idea how long the shadow was inside you?”

“Don’t do that.” Shizuo poked at Izaya’s knitted brows.

“Ow, do what?” Izaya rubbed at his forehead.

“Blame yourself.”

“...” Again Izaya was at a loss for words. Shizuo started to take off his undershirt over his head casually as if he was unconcerned.

“Don’t worry, I plan to make sure I don’t have any weird shadows entering my head again so I’m sorry you’re gonna have to start sleeping with this scent of tobacco in the air every night. I know it sucks but try to endure it, okay?”

“...” Again Izaya didn’t say anything. He couldn’t say anything. There was so much he wanted to say and yet, there was nothing he could voice.

However, Shizuo always seemed to find ways to disrupt Izaya’s bearings.

“So erm...do you happen to know if your bath is connected to this room?” Shizuo asked sheepishly.

“Huh?” Izaya was once again rudely interrupted from his rumination.  

“What I’m saying is...erm…” Shizuo coughed embarrassingly when Izaya followed the blond’s gaze downwards and realized belatedly that the blond’s pants were still tented below the belt.

The vampire covered his mouth in disbelief and then couldn’t believe the situation they were in.

“So like I said,” Shizuo rubbed his forehead in embarrassment as he tried again, “Where…”

“Oh, stop.” Izaya placed a hand on the blond’s shoulder and pushed him back down before Shizuo could get up again. The vampire couldn’t believe that this idiot hunter still had a boner after all that, but he did so Izaya tried to evaluate the issue at hand instead.

“Is that why you kept asking me if it felt good?” Izaya asked curiously after analyzing the situation over in his head. “Because you didn’t want me to...experience the cold showers?”

“....Yeah…” Shizuo replied back a bit flustered.

“So you were planning to jerk me off and then hop to the showers?” Izaya realized since this man clearly didn’t seem to believe that he shouldn’t be touching himself at all but was willing to make Izaya feel good so that at least Izaya could be satisfied.

“Jerk...off?” Shizuo frowned. “What’s that?”

“....You hang around with all those foul mouthed bastards in the church calling vampires ‘whores’ and you still… ah never mind.” Izaya shook his head. Maybe the blond seriously had no idea what those words even meant if he seriously did not have any proper education.

“Do you even know what’s involved in… ‘ _making it feel good_?’” Izaya asked even more curiously.

Shizuo shook his head, extremely embarrassed now.

Izaya bit his lower lips as his long ears twitched.

“Have you at least seen a woman naked?”

Again Shizuo shook his head slowly and looking even more uncomfortable than before if that was even possible as he hung his head low.

“You...don’t even know what a woman looks like naked under their clothes, do you.” That wasn’t even a question but Shizuo again shook his head.  Izaya licked his lips at this delicate ‘ _problem_ ’ he had in his hands.

Somehow, that sort of explained why Shizuo didn’t seem to mind being so ‘liberal’ with his kisses that could be seen as sexual or even be viewed as obscene actions. He was just doing things his body naturally just wanted to do, not quite knowing where his boundaries were.

Now Izaya was slightly curious of his ‘ _i_ _magination._ ’

“So, tell me Shizu-chan. What do I do… _i_ _n your dreams_?”

Shizuo’s eyes widened and then swallowed hard. At first, Izaya didn’t think he would tell him but then the blond spoke, “I don’t remember… my first dream but they were similar in the beginning.”

Izaya remained silently supportive so Shizuo could take his time to gather up his courage.

“It usually starts at ‘ _that night_ ’, so I always thought it was a nightmare. But my mom isn’t there. Nor the house. It’s usually moonlight, sometimes we’re outside in a forest, sometimes just grassfield… sometimes in my room, but the setting didn’t matter. The lights usually dim or silvery… dark. Dark enough that the only source of light are your eyes.”

Izaya felt strangely drawn into this story about the boy’s dream about him. He listened quietly as Shizuo took another breath and then continued, “Your eyes… are like rubies and when the moonlight shines, they glow. And you smile at me.” Shizuo closed his eyes and Izaya wasn’t sure if it was because he was nervous or if he was trying to remember or both.

“And your smile… it’s so beautiful. It calms me and yet scares me. It’s terrifying how much I want to watch you smile at me. In the beginning that was all there was. Just you and me where you hold me and smile down at me. Sometimes you’re patting my head and telling me I’m a good boy… and then you bite me. That’s when I usually wake up.”

Izaya looked a bit puzzled, not quite sure how that would make a boy ‘cream’ his pants at night but apparently that was enough for Shizuo. But he wasn’t done.

“So at first it was just that but then as I grew older, it changed.” Shizuo looked away, as if internally squirming at the idea of saying the rest. “I mean, I was feeding you… I saw how scary you looked in the basement. And of course, growing up you hear things about sex or what it’s like. Not that I really know but it’s just…”

“Do I do something dirty to you?” Izaya finally asked, curious if he could drag something more substantial out of this man. It was probably like a torture to Shizuo but the vampire just couldn’t help but want more.

Shizuo nodded as if he was ashamed.

“What’s… the dirtiest thing I did to you in your dream?” Izaya pressed on, leaning slightly forward.

Shizuo struggled hard before he finally said, “you were licking me.”

“...”

“....”

“....”

“D-down...there.” Shizuo finally added.

“That’s it?” Izaya looked very disappointed.

“T-that’s it?!” Shizuo finally turned to face Izaya, stunned. “It’s absolutely horrid thing to force someone to do!”

“....Well… I wasn’t forcing you or you weren’t forcing me right? In your dream, that is.” Izaya shrugged.

“Well no, b-but I was imagi- you doin- I-I mean… I was forcing… ugh…” Shizuo scratched his head, unable to form the sentence.

“Yes, yes so you were fetishizing me in your dream, I get that. But it’s not quite under your control since it’s just your manifestation of your desires right? Unless… you purposefully imagined your dream to go in that direction? Even then, so what? It’s just a dream.” Izaya didn’t seem to mind it much either way and Shizuo was completely aghast at how calmly the vampire took it.

“I...what? I don’t…? What does that have to do with…? I-I mean, look, you aren’t even offended that I...?” Shizuo stammered, even more confused when Izaya didn’t even to be upset if he had veered his dream in a certain direction. The latter on the other hand, sat up straighter now instead of leaning forward.

“Well, all I did was lick in your dreams. Is that the best you can do? Your imagination sucks, Shizu-chan. Literally.” Izaya giggled, feeling a bit better as they were back to being slightly their normal routine where the vampire was back to teasing the ‘dumb brute’.

“W-well H-Horada kept saying shit like ‘ _suck my dick, you asshole!_ ’ to people and I never got that and then s-suddenly…”

Shizuo couldn’t seem to finish so Izaya supplemented, “So one day, you started having dreams of me literally sucking your frustrated dick?”

“I-I didn’t…!” Shizuo groaned, unable even begin or end his sentence.

“Trust me, that’s not so bad.” Izaya smiled softly, unable to help himself when faced with Shizuo’s innocence. “Horada is much worse than you.”

“Well yes, but that’s not the point! That fucking bastard!” Shizuo muttered in anger as he remembered all the times Horada had bullied him. Izaya smiled again a bit wryly at that, not saying more.

“So, is your boner finally going away now that you’re angry...or does it still need help?” Izaya asked as he changed the subject, his finger slightly touching the tip of the tent.

They both looked down and Shizuo flushed again. It had gotten slightly smaller, maybe. Not all the way still.

“You really must be quite frustrated if you have that much pent up anger.” the vampire murmured softly as he moved closer to Shizuo and placed both hands on the hunter. Then he pushed so that Shizuo would lay on the bed facing up at him. To Shizuo’s surprise, Izaya climbed on top and straddled his hips. The silky canopy of the bed perfectly framed the vampire and his large wings.

“I can help you, you know.” Izaya added, moving his hips suggestively.

“Help?” Shizuo was a bit confused but at the same time it didn’t escape the fact that whatever it was Izaya was suggesting, it would be very provocative. “I...Isn’t it best if we… I mean if I…”

“I think you’ve had one too many cold showers.” Izaya looked down at the muscular chest of the hunter. Then his gaze trailed to the exposed throat and he fingered the jugular notch. “Remember that one time… I climbed on top of you when you won’t wake up? And I started riding against your morning wood?”  

Shizuo gulped hard and nodded, not trusting his voice.

Izaya gracefully smiled and lowered his eyes seductively. “Well back then, you told me to stop.” The vampire licked his lips and whispered darkly, “This time, don’t stop me.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author’s note:  
> And~ another cockblock chapter alskdjfasldkfja;lj ahahaha ^^;;;;  
> There’s a lot of things I revealed in this chapter lol. And more I’ve still not have revealed ahaha. So sorry but they will be answered later in the story, no worries. Consider it foreshadowing pff.  
> But there’s some scenes that i mention that has happened and since this fic is several years old, let me help you with figuring out where I’ve inserted some of these scenes.
> 
> Chapter 1 prologue is where you see Shizuo talk about having dreams of Izaya.  
> Chapter 10, you see a brief example of Shizuo’s wet dream where he dreams of Izaya ‘sucking him off.‘  
> Chapter 14 has the scene where once Izaya ‘rode Shizuo and spanked him’.  
> Chapter 2: has a scene where Kuzuhara, a hunter, is smoking while on the job.


	25. Chapter 25

 

It wasn’t that Orihara Izaya changed his decision. He still firmly believed he shouldn’t allow their ‘relationship’ to go any further. But helping Shizuo relieve himself, that sounded more like a chore or work, something that was distant and separate. At least to Izaya.

However, this was not the case for the blond hunter. Shizuo stared up at Izaya, completely entranced by every little movement the vampire made. From the way his fingertip lightly brushed the tip all the way to the long lashes that covered his eyes, hinting at something far more seductive than what the hunter was prepared for.

It was as if being in control made Orihara Izaya overcome his earlier hesitation. It made him feel that by taking the initiative, he was still in control of his emotions which had been running out of control earlier. Perhaps it was just a ruse or self denial, but Izaya held onto it like a lifeline. And right now, he told himself, that it was his own decision to ‘help’ Shizuo and his decision alone.  
  
He was just aiding this man with this particular problem. In no way was he participating in this absurdity where this human seemed to be seeking further than just a simple relationship between contractors. They were just partners in crime, helping each other survive this insanity that was their reality, just one day at a time. Affection had no place when it came to survival and certainly Izaya did not wish for any further developed sentiments from a mere ‘food source.’

While sitting on top of his stomach, Izaya’s gaze never left from Shizuo’s as his fingers unbuckled their boots one by one and slipped them off.  All four fell with an unflattering clunk onto the floor, each thud louder than the next in Shizuo’s ear as the anticipation grew. After the fourth one fell, Izaya carefully started to untie Shizuo’s pants, loosening the opening for the hardened erection to breathe. Each time those long graceful fingers brushed against him, Shizuo swallowed a groan, watching the vampire untangle the criss-cross knots skillfully. Izaya took no notice as he finally undid the laces and opened it up.

The throbbing erection was lewdly tenting from within his wet tights, the stockings were wrapping around the top area so taut that the outline was clearly visible. Shizuo’s breathing grew harsher as Izaya’s gaze fell on it for a second before his fingers moved upon it, gliding down as if touching a soft key on a piano.

“Mnnngh….” The hunter hissed at the touch. He had dreamed of Izaya touching him, but this was beyond anything he ever felt in his wildest dreams. “I-Izaya I…”

“Shh…” Izaya stopped him. The index finger slid down from the top to the bottom, following one particularly pulsing vein and then back up to the tip before he thumbed a circle. Shizuo shuddered hard, trying his best to hold it back in. The blood rushed to his ears and it was as if all his nerves were focused on that one point where Izaya’s fingertip touched.

“Do you know… how one has sex, Shizu-chan?”

Shizuo was not ready for the sudden question as he was mostly concentrating on not coming from just being teased with one finger right now.

“Huh? I…” Shizuo let out several short breaths. “I...I don’t really…”

“Really?” Izaya’s ruby eyes bore down on him playfully, a hint of smile on his lips just like Shizuo always dreamed. No, it was even more beautiful than the Izaya from his dreams.

“I…” Shizuo tried to concentrate on the question instead of on his wild imagination, where he wanted to just say fuck it and kiss this man that instant. “I know that it has to do with…” Shizuo felt too vulgar to say the words, “fucking with the penis.”

“Well that’s good. I’m glad I don’t have to at least describe that part.” Izaya smirked as he now settled his ass on top of the length of the erection, lightly sliding over it without completely dropping his weight. Shizuo groaned at that feeling. The friction felt so good but he needed more.

“Do you know how to… ‘ _fuck’_?” Izaya asked, emphasizing the last word with a thrust of his hips, sliding his ass over the hard member. Shizuo shuddered as his cock squirt a small amount of precum. He shook his head, not trusting his voice right now as his hands twisted on the bedsheet under him.

“Well… you put it inside a hole, you can say. Women… have them between their legs instead of a penis. And for a man…” Izaya licked his lips as he slid again and stopped just so that the tip of Shizuo’s erection was poking at his entrance and allowed the hunter to ’ _feel_ ’ and imagine what it could be like.  “You insert it in _here_.”

The vampire watched as his human swallowed hard, the blond’s eyes on that spot where they touched. Orihara Izaya in his full vampire clothed glory with his elegantly embroidered outfit had his bottom rubbing lewdly against Shizuo’s wet cock and never in the blond’s wildest dreams did he ever think this would happen.

Shizuo couldn’t hold it in as another squirt leaked out of his erection, now wetting the spot that it touched.

“Oh my, you’ve spoiled my clothes. I should punish you.” Izaya purred as he leaned forward, his hands on both sides of Shizuo’s head like a cat who cornered his little prey. Shizuo couldn’t pry his eyes away from this magnificent creature and his heart pounded so hard, it felt as if it would burst out of his chest.

“Cat got your tongue?” Izaya laughed merrily and Shizuo couldn’t help but want to see more of Izaya like this. Happy.

“Maybe.” Shizuo smiled back sheepishly, wondering if he was allowed to touch Izaya. Not anywhere particularly suggestive, just like holding his hand or touching his smiling face. The blond just enjoyed those simple moments.

“Or maybe you want to be punished.” He teased as Izaya began to slide up and down that hard cock, staining his bottom pants with Shizuo’s precum. Shizuo took a sharp breath again as the vampire began to move, stimulating him once more.

“Nnngh…..” Shizuo let out a low groan as his hands reflexively grabbed onto the vampire’s hips. He wanted more. He wasn’t even sure what more there was but he didn’t want Izaya to stop. And Izaya didn’t as he slid up and down the length, the friction of their fabric rubbing together in a way it started to hurt the blond but he dared not tell Izaya to stop.

“Mmm… do you like that?” Izaya peered over at Shizuo’s face, his voice seductive like a Cheshire cat’s lure. “Does this feel good?” He teased, throwing Shizuo’s words back at him. The hunter couldn’t even respond to that other than gritting his teeth and trying not to come so quickly.

“Your blood… must taste really exquisite right now…” Izaya lamented a bit as he leaned lower and dragged his tongue hotly over the blond’s throat where he would normally bite a human.

“Hnnnnghhh!!” Shizuo shuddered as his hands tightened around Izaya’s hips, trying his best not to come. The vampire flinched a bit but said nothing.

“Don’t want to come yet?” the vampire teased, a sweat forming on his brow. He too was getting hard. Izaya sat up straighter and still undulated his hips but then his fingers started to unbuckle his belt and loosen his own pants. Shizuo’s eyes bulged, not realizing until now exactly how much he actually wanted to ‘ _see_ ’ Izaya down there. He had seen him nude before but…

However, Izaya didn’t fully lower his pants, just loosening it so his hardened erection had some room to breathe. His graceful fingers slid down Shizuo’s chest, down the well shaped sternum and then hard muscles of his abdomen. His fingers didn’t stop as they trailed over the beautifully sculpted hip bone and found the beginning strands of his scratchy pubic hair. Shizuo took a sharp intake of breath when Izaya’s fingers brushed through his rough hair to finally reach their destination. The vampire smiled as he took a hold of it, wrapping his fingers one by one around the base and feeling Shizuo’s heart beat pulse erratically. Shizuo groaned particularly loud when Izaya squeezed the base and slowly dragged his fist up.

“Oh God….” Shizuo swore, unable to think of anything else but the way Izaya was stroking him. This was clearly profane, especially having a vampire sinner touch him this way but it felt too good. It felt too  _right_. He shuddered hard as he tried to hold everything back, only to have a thick squirt of precum jizz the front of his stockings, soaking the fabric while lubricating Izaya’s fist which now continued to move up and down more freely.

“Haaa…. Aaah… hnnn… nnn… I….Iz….” Shizuo tossed and turned, his hands finally covering his mouth before he moaned too loud. Izaya was staring at him intensely, watching his every move, figuring out what he liked. Shizuo liked it when the the thumb swiped over his head.

Shizuo liked it when the tip of Izaya’s finger was pushed into the urethra. Shizuo liked it when he twisted his fist while going up, and the tight squeeze around his base. And he loved it when a thumb rubbed the underside, where his vine throbbed.

“Hnnn….!! Nnngh…!” When Shizuo looked as if he was about to come, Izaya pulled down the stockings completely and… he swallowed the cock whole.

“!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!” Shizuo’s eyes flipped open at the sudden soft warmth of the velvety mouth enveloping his cock. Unable to hold back any further, Shizuo groaned loudly and came directly into Izaya’s mouth. Before the vampire could swallow much, the blond pulled out, swearing softly to himself and shaking hard.

“D-don’t!” Shizuo’s heart was pounding so fast, he could barely hear himself shout. Then his cock throbbed hard as he realized he had come all over Izaya’s beautiful face instead, the sticky gooey mess all over his cheek and nose, some on his hair… most of them dripping down his chin.

T-that made his cock throb even harder, unwilling to soften.

“I was supposed to drink it you know.” Izaya frowned as he licked his lips to taste it. Then he cringed at the bitterness.

“D-did you forget? Y-you….! I-it won’t taste g-good. Never mind, it would _never_  taste good with or without the...c-contract!” Shizuo realized he was covered in sweat from the intensity of his orgasm, which felt incredible but was lost thanks to his sincere worry that Izaya might swallow some of his dirty ‘seeds’.

“W-well… not really but… it’s supposed to make you feel good?” Izaya sat back a bit and smiled ruefully as he tried to wipe the cum from his lips with his thumb. “Did you like it?”

“Hell. Fuck.” Shizuo swipes his own sweaty brow and flopped back onto the bed. Good? GOOD? It was fucking indescribable!

“I’ll take that as a yes.” Izaya laughed softly, more relaxed as he leaned on one shoulder while propping himself on one elbow and one wing on the handful of pillows behind him.

“Ugh….” Shizuo groaned. This wasn’t quite what he had in mind. This wasn’t…

But God, it felt glorious. Incredible. And his freaking cock wanted more!

Before Shizuo could recover, he heard a rustle and then he felt all his hair stand on its ends when he saw Izaya crawl forward between his legs to push down his pants even more.

“Izaya! No!” This time, Shizuo shouted in shock when Izaya came back for more, his fingers already pushing down the stockings and around his cock for another firm grip, Izaya’s beautiful lips parted to swallow him again.

“Why not? You liked it, right?”

“Y-y...yes… but…” Shizuo cringed as Izaya opened his mouth and that silky tongue licked the base of his dick, covered in cum. He shuddered hard, sweat forming his brow again at the intensity. Oh God, have mercy on him, that sensation alone was enough for him to experience that sweet ecstasy again.

“It’s… I’m dirty….” Shizuo tried to form some excuse as his hands balled under him, crumpling the silk sheets.

“You’re a Saint, you can’t ever be any dirtier than being absolutely Holy.” Izaya giggled before his tongue dragged all the way up the hard erection that had not calmed down despite his previous orgasm.

“Y-you know what I mean!”

“Well, you just took a bath so no, I don’t. Besides I’m the vampire, the dirty sinner, aren’t I?” Izaya smirked and unable to talk more as the tongue now pushed into the slit of Shizuo’s cock, the part that he seemed to like when Izaya’s finger pressed in.

“Hnnnnnngh!!!” It took all of Shizuo’s strength to not come… and not rip Izaya’s sheets. His gaze already hazy, he looked down only to swear again as Izaya started to lick up and down his cock and slurp. T-this wasn’t quite what he remembered in his dream. It was, but this was so much better. So much more incredible. He didn’t even understand what Izaya was doing with his tongue or the mouth and oh-God! T-the way Izaya opened his mouth to swallow him whole and suck!

“S-shit!” Shizuo cursed again, his knees trembling and his toes curling. He had no idea where Izaya had learned all this nor did he care. Just that vampires really REALLY knew how to ‘ _suck_ ’ well.

Shizuo cursed again as he grabbed a pillow and groaned into it, pouring his sperm into Izaya’s mouth once more as the vampire skillfully sucked and twirled his tongue.

The blond peeked and watched as Izaya cringed but faithfully swallowed all his cum. That cum couldn’t have tasted good at all, especially with the spell on him. Even though Shizuo did not understand why Izaya drank his seed, watching him drink the cum that must taste nasty for the sake of satisfying Shizuo’s desires somehow made his heart burst with so much pride and joy he couldn’t possibly comprehend.

“I-Izaya….” Shizuo almost whimpered like a young boy as Izaya then licked his cock clean. After two incredible orgasms in a row, his cock was slowly shrinking down. Finally. But god, it felt like he could go for a third if Izaya kept doing this.

“Done? It looks like you’re finally calming down.” Izaya nodded as he pulled away, his fingers still stroking it to keep Shizuo in that euphoric aftermath.

“Where did you… never mind.” Shizuo decided not to ask where Izaya learned it. Maybe it was instinctive or he had other playmates. Regardless it was not a respectful thing to ask. Shizuo flopped back down to the bed, exhausted. The dizzying sensation still swam in his head warmly.

“So, no more cold showers?” Izaya laughed again, that silvery peal of laughter that was so addictive to Shizuo’s ears.

“Mmm… sleep sounds good right now.” Shizuo murmured, his head still soaked in his sweat. He didn’t remember when he had last had such an amazing feeling. It was refreshing and completely satisfying.

“Good.”

There was something in Izaya’s voice that caught Shizuo’s attention as he opened his eyes to gaze up at his vampire.

He was smiling.

The smile he always imagined in his dreams.

Shizuo’s mouth parted just a bit in shock as if his memory matched up with his reality, as his dream finally caught up with the present time after flowing backwards.

“Iz…. Izaya?”

“Yes?” Izaya tilted his head and still smiled.

… That made no sense. Shizuo thought. How was it that, he had never seen Izaya’s smile like this before and yet… it was as if… he had seen it. He must have seen it because he dreamt it. And he knew Izaya wasn’t smiling like this ‘that night.’ So…

How did he remember exactly how Izaya smiled when he was relaxed and happy?

Then again maybe it wasn’t a memory. It was just that his imagination was that good for him to perfectly guess in his head how Izaya would smile if he was happy.

Yes, that must be what it was. Nevermind that… when he was a child, he wouldn’t have known what kind of a man Izaya was at all.

Shizuo propped himself up as he grabbed Izaya and pulled him down to bed with him, trying to shake off that weird déjà vu sensation and wanting to cuddle. As if they were back in their tiny shack at the church grounds.

“Izaya...Y… y…” Shizuo then realized something before he could ask Izaya to sleep with him.

He looked down and sure enough, Izaya was still hard. The vampire’s cheeks blushed a bit when he saw where Shizuo’s gaze was headed.

“Well, I guess it’s my turn for a cold shower?” Izaya teased.

“I… I’m nowhere as good as you but I could try.” Shizuo whispered into Izaya’s ear.

“....”

They stared at each other in the eyes for a moment in silence, the candle lights flickering.

“Alright. Go ahead.” Izaya nodded finally, his eyes never leaving Shizuo’s eye contact, challenging him.

Shizuo’s breath grew a bit ragged at the idea. Him. Touching Izaya sensually. He… he had… never thought he would ever do this with Izaya.

The blond licked his lips, his throat suddenly feeling dry. Izaya was still fully clothed, on the surface impenetrable.  Not looking away even for a second, Shizuo’s hand reached down to fumble with Izaya’s strings. The blond was less skillful and a whole lot less graceful as he tugged impatiently until the pants came undone. Izaya’s eyes glittered with mirth when he could feel Shizuo’s impatient hands on him. Still, the hunter refused to look down to figure out the knot because…. Izaya looked so happy. He was smiling and giggling. He didn’t want to look away.

Then the stockings were also impatiently pushed down. Shizuo’s sweaty hand finally touched the vampire’s smooth skin, cooler to his touch than the hunter’s own hot temperature. Izaya shivered a bit as if the touch burned him but his ruby eyes did not break off their gaze. Though his long lashes batted a few times playfully and sometimes lowered partially as if shy, Izaya’s gaze never left him either in silent communication, a quiet and soft encouragement for him to continue.

Shizuo swallowed hard again as his one hand around Izaya’s hip slipped back a bit to touch the vampire’s butt cheeks. It was round and soft… and now that he knew about… how men have sex, he was extremely curious what would happen if he were to penetrate the vampire with his own finger. So a finger slipped lower and in between, just a small brush and it sent the raven shuddering again, a soft moan escaping his beautiful supple lips. Shizuo wanted to swallow that moan and kiss him so much, it physically hurt to suppress it.

Gasping for breath as their hot puffs mingled between the close proximity of their lips that did not quite meet, Shizuo’s finger decided not to go any further other than to inspect him. Sliding back up, he thumbed the hip bone line, the smooth sculpt exciting to Shizuo suddenly. He watched as the vampire’s eyes softened just a bit, their gaze still unbroken.  Finally the blond feels the soft smooth skin break into the coarse edges of hair… and slipping down further to find the well-shaped manhood, warm and patiently waiting for him.

Shizuo grabbed it, hopefully similarly to how Izaya gripped his and he earned a soft hiss from the vampire, his eyes closing briefly to hold back a shudder.

The blond thought he could climax just from Izaya’s exquisite expression alone. The way the pale raven’s cheeks had that hint of pink and red of a blush. The way he licked his lips to wet them, inviting a kiss. The way his breath grew hotter and hotter… the way those ruby eyes glowed with passion and hunger, waiting for Shizuo to drag it out of his heart. Izaya was completely dressed from the torso up, the stuffy look matched his hot breath. And the fact that his lower part was bare only to Shizuo only made everything so much kinkier. It was like unlocking a hidden treasure that only a few were even allowed to peek at. Shizuo couldn’t help but feel his heart flutter even more as Izaya started to open up to him.

The grip tightened and started to stroke, moving up and down that slick cock and watching the raven unravel, breathing slowly and stutteringly. Shuddering against him. His fingers clinging onto Shizuo, silently asking for more. There were no words spoken. There were none needed. Izaya had shown him what to do and Shizuo watched, carefully figuring out what made Izaya moan, what made his eyes flutter, what made his breath catch and what made his grip tighten.

Izaya liked it when Shizuo worked slowly, tightening around the base and gently opening up at the top. Izaya liked it when a thumb was rolled on the underside of his cock and he liked it when Shizuo rolled his testicles in his palm. He liked it when a finger dragged under and pressed against the skin between and also pressed lightly against the entrance of his anus but didn’t actually penetrate. He quickly stopped when Izaya’s grip around his arm tightened and his eyes widened almost in fear.

“I won’t.” Shizuo whispered. Then he watched as Izaya relaxed again. He noticed now there was something else in Izaya’s eyes and he didn’t like that. Although he wanted to continue to watch Izaya’s expression and drink it all in, he needed to step up his game.

Shizuo went down on the bed, his hands tugged the pants down even more along the way so they gathered at Izaya’s ankles. Then unceremoniously he swallowed, remembering how much he himself liked it.

“Hmmmfff…!” Izaya twisted in the bed, his wings pinching his back. But he groaned into the pillow as Shizuo started to suck. At first the blond looked up to see if he had hurt the man but no. It seemed that Izaya too must have loved it because his eyes were wild and wanted to cover his moaning. Feeling a bit better, Shizuo started to suck harder and harder, faster and faster, wanting to please his vampire just as much as he had done for him.

Izaya grabbed a pillow and covered up his face, moaning into it, his legs trembling as Shizuo sucked his cock, the tongue twirling around it the way he had done for him. The blond drank the precum that started to drip out and it tasted sweet. He had thought it would feel dirty but no. He wanted to drink more of Izaya’s sweet essence. So he devoured it greedily and started to suck  Izaya’s cock for more.

“Mmmff… mmm….. Mfff!!!” Izaya’s legs suddenly clamped around Shizuo’s head and without warning, the vampire came. Shizuo drank it like milk before pulling up to lick the cock clean too, his fingers making small circles around those milky white thighs.

After giving the inner thigh a small kiss, Shizuo pulled up and removed the pillow to check on Izaya after the orgasm.

To his complete and utter shock, Izaya’s face was wet with tears, his eyes closed shut.

“I-Izaya?!!!” Shizuo threw the pillow aside and quickly pulled the vampire up, wondering if he had hurt him. “W-what happened? What’s wrong?” Shizuo tried to ask without raising his voice but without a doubt, he was panicking.

“N-nothing. It’s… it’s nothing.” Izaya buried his face into Shizuo’s chest, trying to calm himself. “It’s not … it’s not you.”

“.....” Shizuo didn’t understand as he held the vampire close. “I… I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have…”

Again Izaya shook his head.

“It’s... it’s not you. It felt good. It… it’s not… what you think.”

No matter what Izaya said, something was wrong. Shizuo had done something wrong and his heart felt so sick that once again he had inadvertently hurt him. His arms weren’t even sure if he should hold him, even more afraid of hurting him further.

“.... Izaya. I’m so sorry. I’m… so sorry.” Shizuo said it again and again, hanging his head as Izaya was trying to calm himself too, his face still buried in his chest, his wings folded up so he could hide himself into a ball.

Shizuo wanted to die. He didn’t know what had gone wrong. What he had done wrong. He just… he just wanted this man to be happy. And Izaya was happy a moment ago. He was even smiling.

W-what did he do wrong? Shizuo had no clue.

“Is… there anything I can do?”

Izaya shook his head no.  Shizuo didn’t want to take that as an answer so he pressed despite wanting to give Izaya space to recover.

“M… May I hold you?”

Izaya nodded yes. Carefully, Shizuo gathered up the broken vampire back into his arms, letting the man use his wings to cover his face. That was fine. Shizuo softly brushed back the matted hair from the sweat. Shizuo tried to process what had happened. Izaya came. He must have liked it. Or at least, his body did.

Continuously brushing back Izaya’s hair and softly patting him, he could hear Izaya slowly calm down. He avoided the wings because he remembered Izaya didn’t like being touched there while giving him warm rubs, holding him close until he felt Izaya’s muscles relax and unlock one by one...until the vampire fell asleep in his arms.

Even then, Shizuo was awake holding him, giving him soft gentle back rubs, wondering again and again if he was hurting the vampire before he too finally fell asleep in exhaustion.

That night, for the first time since their separation, Izaya fell into a peaceful sleep without any nightmares.

 

* * *

 

 

“So did you find out?” She asked.

“No. He won’t tell me.” He sighed, frustrated.

“Do you think… it’s that hunter who is…?” His friend asked delicately, leaving it hanging on purpose, their whispers just barely audible.

“No, that can’t be it. I even used ‘Charm’ on him and he still resisted.”

There was a gasp from all three.

“Y-you used whAT?!” She gasped in utter horror although her eyes were wild with crazy imagination and he knew he had to stop her before she decided to to enjoy it further.

“I didn’t make him drink my blood, if that’s what you’re thinking.” He hissed. “I only tested him. It doesn’t seem like it’s because it’s a direct order. I think it’s something else that’s making him obey in his own volition.”

“Did you drink his?” She asked, her eyes wildly twinkling at the audacious idea.

“NO!” All three men shouted in unison in horror. She pouted and grumbled at the lost opportunity.

“What do you think is preventing him from drinking blood then? And those nightmares? Clearly the church has done something.” The other one mused quietly, his squinty eyes slowly opening into Cheshire cat slits.

“I don’t trust the church for one bit,” the friend spit onto the ground in disgust.

“Whatever it is, we’re going to find out. Even if it means, we’re going to have to kill that hunter to free our liege.” He said darkly.

The four nodded in silence. Whatever method it took, whatever sacrifice it may need. They will free their liege, Orihara Izaya.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy Halloween! I'm so sorry you guys keep waiting. I'm so sorry for being a slow writer... ;_; thank you for reading and reviewing. It keeps me going even if I hate myself. :---;
> 
> Huge thanks again to my beta Sollertis/Rabu for always being there for me.


	26. Chapter 26

 

It was early evening. The sun had just set when Kadota got up to check on Izaya and the hunter. The vampires were waking up from their sleep and the castle was bustling again with activity. Kadota stood still while the human servants dressed him in his clean doublet pants. Two servants took their time lacing him up around the wings in the back and then they moved around him as the lace traveled to the front of his vest. Lastly, they held up his long embroidered coat to finish the dressing. 

After a quick drink from the decanter that had been replenished with renewed blood wine, Kadota made his way to his liege’s wing. He didn’t particularly like the fact that Izaya was given a smaller living quarters than him, definitely clarifying the lower status to the other vampires but Izaya didn’t seem to particularly care, which worried him. Regardless, it was a secure place like all other parts of the castle and at least Kadota took refuge in that thought.

When he arrived to the passageway, Kadota quickly saw a predicament at the front door. The human maids were standing by the door with their carts and had not entered, whispering to each other instead.

“Is there any problem?” Kadota approached the maids respectfully. 

“Well… Lord Orihara did not answer when we rang the bell…” One of the younger maids spoke up before one of the matrons hushed her. The girl blushed for speaking out of turn. 

“Lord Orihara has not given us the permission to enter.” The eldest spoke to Kadota while bowing. The other women followed. 

Kadota held in a frustrated sigh. There were already rumors that Izaya was spending long private times with his human, a Nebula vampire hunter, and this would only solidify that rumor even more. 

He pushed past the maids and decided to knock on the door loudly and listen. The door was thick, too thick for humans but his sensitive vampire ears could already hear whisperings within the room. 

“S-Shizu-chan, we can’t… nngh… They’re waiting, we need to...”

“Just a bit more….”

Kadota's ears burned when he heard a moan. Normally he’d be happy that Izaya was finally drinking but he did not like the image of the hunter taking advantage of his liege when Izaya did not want ‘more.’ 

He then firmly turned the knob and slowly opened the door, making sure that the heavy door creaked open loudly. The maids then ushered inside quickly to prepare the morning table and air the room. Kadota had noted that the maids did not bring any breakfast for vampires as Izaya specifically had said no blood wine near his vicinity but there was a fruit basket for the human. Kadota had suggested that to quell any rumors from spreading further, to at least have them bring the wine and that he didn’t have to drink it, just pour it down the drain, but Izaya refused. Apparently, the smell made him sick. Already there were so many rumors being spread about Izaya but what really worried Kadota the most was that Izaya did not seem to care. Granted, he was a vampire who always looked ahead but this was very unlike him. At least, not like the old Izaya that he knew who cared about his public image. Kadota did wonder what it was that Izaya was more focused on since his liege didn’t seem to care too much about the politics of Dollars or specifically, his position and status, but Izaya had not shared his thoughts with him.

“Good evening.” Kadota stood in the middle of the room where the waiting room was, calling out to Izaya who was still in the bedroom. He sat down and waited as the curtains were drawn to the bedroom and Izaya stepped out. He was already fully clothed, not at all mussed or flush-cheeked. By now Kadota had gotten used to the fact that Izaya no longer liked having maids dress him, which was such a drastic change from the Izaya he knew a decade ago. In fact, there were a lot of subtle things about Izaya that had been so drastically changed, only someone who had known him for a hundred years like him would even know. At least Izaya still liked to maintain his perfect appearance even if Kadota had a feeling something was up just a few minutes ago. That had not changed.

Izaya frowned as he came to sit down. 

“You drank before you came.” Izaya said disapprovingly.

“Just because you don’t like blood anymore doesn’t mean I have to abstain as well.” Kadota shrugged. Kadota noted the irritation from Izaya as his liege’s upper right eyebrow twitched but he ignored that. Izaya’s nose had become extremely sharp and sensitive to the smell of blood or rather the ‘stench’ of it. Kadota wasn’t even sure if it was a curse or a restriction yet but from Izaya’s yesterday’s reaction, he wouldn’t ‘die’ from drinking another’s blood. Which meant it was quite possible that it was Izaya’s own decision to abstain. Kadota wondered if there was some curse placed on his tongue but… he seemed to be drinking the hunter’s blood fine. Either the curse or the restriction made Izaya to drink only a certain type of blood… or only that hunter’s. If that was the case, Kadota was very upset with Shizuo who probably had placed such a restriction or the curse. Without much information however, Kadota was forced to keep an open mind, for now. 

Izaya rolled his eyes as he leaned back and watched the maids clean the already clean waiting room for any dust. The maids were not allowed in the bedchambers while Izaya or Shizuo were in their quarters, they were to ‘clean’ after the two left the rooms. With the sun down and the night just beginning, the stars slowly appeared one by one. The maids drew the curtains to the windows before Izaya waved for them to be closed. Nodding the maids drew them closed again, covering up the night sky. Instead, they pulled the cart that carried new sets of clothes even if Izaya had his own wardrobe he could select from in his bedroom chambers.

“That looks more formal than normal. Is there a ball?” Izaya eyed them briefly before focusing on his previous war general.

“Yes.” Kadota nodded as one of the maids brought a sealed envelope in a silver platter along with a small letter opening knife. Izaya took it and ripped it open. As Izaya read the invitation carefully, Kadota took a good look at his liege. He had a healthier glow, much less pale than last night. Good. He had finally drunk blood. Kadota had already opened his invitation and he was relieved to know that Izaya had gotten one. That was one of the reasons why he had come to see him after all.  
  
That and…

“Where’s the hunter?” He asked as casually as possible

“Shizuo? He’s…”

“Here,” was the unceremonious grunt as the hunter appeared through the bedroom doorway and made his way down the steps to the lounge area. Kadota was a tiny bit surprised to see that Shizuo was in fact dressed properly. The laces were all properly tied, although his clothes were much more wrinkled than Izaya’s for some reason. The most mismatched image of it all was that, despite being fully dressed, his hair was like a bird’s nest. 

Kadota briefly wondered if Izaya had dressed the hunter and the idea of a vampire and his liege doing such a servant-like chore for a human and a ‘hunter’ at that rankled his pride. 

Then Kadota felt Izaya’s ‘death glare’ and quickly averted away his disapproving gaze from the blond who slumped down on the sofa next to his liege. Kadota coughed awkwardly.

“Anyways, it looks like both of you are invited to the ball tonight.”

“....” Izaya kept staring coldly at him, which spoke volumes compared to his silence, and Kadota did his best not to avert his eyes only to look away eventually. He wasn’t very good at dealing with Izaya’s angry glares even back then. Kadota still disapproved of the way the vampire hunter sat next to the young vampire lord without a care in the world, as if ignorant of the need to respect his status. He looked like he thought he belonged there, unaware of all the etiquette rules he was breaking with his position alone. Furthermore, Izaya did not seem to want Kadota to address the obvious to the hunter so he sighed and changed the subject instead.

“Do you think it’s a…”

Kadota paused decisively and waited. Shizuo looked perplexed until one of the maids came with a small platter of fruit and the blond happily picked an apple to munch on. Izaya then waved at the maids to leave. The humans bowed and closed the door behind them. 

“Of course it’s a trap.” Izaya finished for Kadota as he sat up. Shizuo’s ears perked up at this as he paused from biting into the apple. 

“Trap?” Shizuo spoke with his mouth full and Kadota couldn’t help but notice the lack of manners in this human in particular. Izaya didn’t seem to care or perhaps he had gotten used to him, both of which were things also different from the vampire Kadota once knew. 

Izaya shrugged. “Most likely a trap. It’s a bit early but Mikado usually likes to move fast. He always makes sure to only make a move once he knows he has a good plan, though. Which means…”

“It’s possibly a plan he set into motion years ago. That or he had already prepared everything for this to happen.” Kadota finished for Izaya. Then he scowled. “This is really bad. We aren’t prepared for anything.”

“I’ve already said there’s no way for us to prepare for his plans. We just have to be ready to react properly.” Izaya shrugged. 

“I don’t like it.” Then Kadota added darkly, “this isn’t how you used to operate.” Izaya always was one step ahead. Always had several backup plans for every situation. 

“...Dotachin,” Izaya said, using the more friendly and personal epithet. “What is the worst case scenario?”

“...” Kadota thought about it. “Humiliating you in public and excommunication? No… Torturing and killing you… and then us?” He thought about it. He would be devastated if Erika, Walker and Togusa were tortured and killed. But no, there was probably something a lot worse Izaya had in mind that Mikado could do. 

Izaya shook his head. “Close but no. The worst case scenario I could think of is, he kills you, me, and commits genocide of everyone affiliated with the Orihara clan.”

Shizuo had paused from eating and was listening intently now as Izaya’s gaze grew somber. 

“Death is the ultimate silencer. He is sadistic enough to kill us in the cruelest method possible. And you and I both know that.”

Kadota didn’t need to be told that. Him and Izaya… the gang and everyone in the Orihara clan had experienced that at first hand. That was… if they could prove that Mikado was the one that had done the deed, back a few decades ago. They had high suspicions since Mikado had the motive but nothing to link him to the crime. 

“Then don’t walk into the trap.” Shizuo growled finally, breaking the silence. 

“Not that easy, Shizu-chan.” Izaya turned to face him with a wry smile. “Rejecting the invitation would not be highly recommended in this case. The subject of the ball is about you after all.”

“W-wait, what?!” The hunter sat up confused and snatched the invitation rudely. Then he frowned because he couldn’t read the vampire language which looked like scribbles and doodles to him. “What does it say?”   


“That I’m invited to the ball in the honor of our highly respected guest Saint Mikaela. So the ball is in your honor. You have to go.” Izaya smirked. “I guess I can pretend to be sick and stay but I am guessing you’d rather have me by your side?”

The blond human grumbled and tossed the letter, rolling his eyes. “Why do I have to go?” Kadota wasn’t sure if this human was asking because he didn’t understand the consequences or if he really thought it was a sound advice not to go.

“Well. It’s your ball in your honor.” Izaya repeated, trying to explain in plain words even if that meant repeating himself again. “It’d be subjecting the king of vampires to great shame if you don’t make an appearance.” Izaya’s eyes twinkled in amusement, “which I admit will be highly amusing but no. Mikado, I’m sure has several plans ready in case you do not attend. He will make sure that this will be a public display and a sign that my ‘hold’ on you, which I’ve proclaimed to the court that I have clearly ‘tamed’ you, is false. And he’ll then be able to take you away from me. Currently, you’re under my protection. He will have the legal-”

“Okay, I get it. I still think this is all ridiculous.” Shizuo stomped his boot on the floor and growled. “So I have to go even though we know it’s a trap?! And you have to go with me even though we all know this is a trap? And we all might die?”

“Yes.” Izaya answered simply. “Although it is highly unlikely that Mikado will massacre us all at the ball. The consequences of not going are rather obvious. Mikado will have a legitimate reason to use force. If we do go to the ball however, then we will find out more of what Mikado wants from us.”

And from there, follow the maze of traps after traps. Kadota already had a headache. He could already see the labyrinth that Mikado had imprisoned them in. He felt as if there was no exit to freedom. Just dead ends that led to their doom. It was either dying now or later. He kept hoping Izaya had some plan but it seemed like Izaya was carefully avoiding the dead ends as they continued down the maze lanes, even if he knew all they were doing was prolonging the inevitable end game.

“You don’t know what he wants?” The hunter huffed, interrupting Kadota’s chain of thought. 

“We already know what he wants. The question is why… I guess.” Izaya calmly replied.

“Okay, what does he want then?” Shizuo glared angrily and Kadota did not like how this man was talking back to his lord in such a manner. 

“You. Obviously.” Izaya replied, again undisturbed by Shizuo’s anger.

“Me?  _ Why me? _ ” Shizuo blinked, confused at the unexpected answer.

“Exactly. Other than that you’re a reborn saint. Although I have a hunch or two.” Izaya leaned back again. Although Izaya looked relaxed, Kadota knew from years of knowing him that he was actually trying to ‘look’ relaxed to exude confidence. Kadota wondered if Izaya too was apprehensive but he just couldn’t let the hunter know that. Did Izaya not trust him or… perhaps he needed this hunter to not doubt him. Kadota wasn’t sure. But he had a feeling…

Shizuo was tapping his foot impatiently. “And what are those ideas?” 

Kadota watched Izaya carefully, wondering how he planned to maneuver around this question.

Izaya simply shrugged. “You’re a reborn saint. Why wouldn’t anyone want you?” 

No matter how much Kadota tried to analyze, he couldn’t tell if Izaya was being honest with Shizuo or if he was trying to cover it up with false bravado. 

“Anyways, we are attending the ball. There aren’t many ways for us to outmaneuver Mikado if we don’t. Hopefully he might slip if we continue to go along with his plans for a bit longer.” He turned to face Kadota again. “Do you know who has been invited?”

Kadota nodded. “Most of the upper elites have been invited.”

“Most… but not all?”

Kadota shook his head no. Izaya pondered for a bit. 

“Any correlations to a group?”

“The Amphisbaena in which Lady Earthworm is part of, as well as Toramaru’s Chikage Rokujo and….” Kadota made a list of those who he knew were attending.  Izaya listened quietly, making a list in his head. He started to ask a few questions as to which houses and clans had not been invited. 

“So literally all the ‘heads’ of each clan are invited.” Izaya laughed ruefully. “Glad to know I’m still considered a leader of my own clan.”

That was the part that Kadota was worried about. They were ‘both’ invited. It was true that once Izaya had gone missing for a decade, the Dollar’s council committee had to appoint Kadota as the ‘head’. But Kadota had continued to delay as much as possible taking up that mantle just in case Izaya returned. Now that Izaya had returned… 

Kadota let out a sigh. He wanted to talk to Izaya alone. Not with this… human and a vampire hunter and… now a reborn saint? How much had Izaya hidden from him? Exactly what were his ‘real’ plans? The Dollars had swallowed up more than 80% of the vampire clans and at this rate... There were so many things he wanted to talk to Izaya about but this hunter won’t leave his liege’s side!

“There’s something I want to discuss.” Kadota started, his eyes getting serious. Then he looked over at Shizuo and then back at Izaya, giving him the hint. 

“Go ahead. I figured that’s why you were here.”  Izaya sat back and eased into the couch’s arm, his head resting on his palm. 

“Alone.” Kadota finally forced himself to say the obvious since Izaya kept ignoring his more subtle signals. 

“No,” Izaya dismissed him easily, so easily that it stabbed Kadota in the heart. “Shizu-chan stays. He hears anything you have to say to me.”

Kadota’s eyes narrowed. Did that mean, this Shizuo had his lord bound by some contract? Did this vampire hunter not completely trust Izaya? Or was it the other way around, did Izaya trust this man? But to be commanded and to have his request rejected in front of the newcomer hurt. 

“I’ve been worried for a while,” Kadota decided to continue after all since the matter concerned him too much. The fact that Izaya didn’t seem to care about his status anymore meant a few things but his main worry was…

“Are you planning to step down?” Kadota worded it carefully. Not specifically saying that he thought Izaya might leave but the ‘unspoken words’ were there. 

His lord considered him for a bit silently while Kadot waited with bated breath.

“Not in the way you’re thinking.” Izaya also answered vaguely and incompletely. Kadota felt a deep growl building inside him from the unsatisfactory answer which he knew that knowing Izaya, was a ‘yes’. 

“Izaya, I…!” 

“No, hear me out.”

“No. I won’t. Why the hell did you even bother coming back if you plan to step down?!”

“Dotachin, please.” Izaya raised his hand and gestured him to calm down but Kadota was seethingly angry. He had wait for more than a decade, almost two. He had prolonged and delayed everything he could so that when Izaya did come back, he could come back in full power. But no, Mikado and the Blue Squares had been doing everything to diminish Izaya’s reputation and ridicule him in every aspect ever since the Orihara clan joined them. Now that Izaya had finally came back, Kadota wanted the clan restored to its full glory and of course that included Izaya in the picture. But it seemed something had changed Izaya between these few years. Fifteen or so years wasn’t a short period for a vampire but not a particularly long one. Even so, Kadota felt a distance between them he had never felt before. Izaya had always included him in his plans. They always shared the same vision together. He was his second-in-command. And now…!

Kadota glared at the blond sitting next to his lord who looked extremely confused at the change of tone and direction of their conversation.

“Is it because of him?” Kadota’s animosity was no longer hidden, both in his glare or his words. 

“No, Dotachin.” Izaya replied complacently, even using their childhood names. “Our plan still hasn’t changed. We will restore the clan. But it can’t be through me anymore.”

“Why?!” There was anguish in Kadota’s voice at such a final tone from Izaya. “You’re back now. And you know your sisters aren’t of age yet.”

“Yet. But they will be. Mikado is probably going to get rid of me if I stay. That’s his main plan probably so he could take over. It’s best if you are my sisters’ guardian until they become of age and can take up the mantle. You know it yourself.” Izaya answered in earnest.  “In the end, we need to… consider the clan as our main objective. Like we said previously, the worst outcome is if we’re all killed. This is so most of us will survive. Even if that means, cutting me out.”

Kadota did not like that. He couldn’t imagine his life without Izaya as his lord. Yes, his twin sisters were already being groomed but…

It was Izaya who was raised to be their leader. _He_ , Kadota Kyohei, was raised specifically to be Izaya’s second-in-command and his confidant. He believed he would one day die protecting him. Now, he was to replace Izaya, throw him out and be Izaya’s heirs’ guardian. He did not like this.. This wasn’t what he believed his future would be or what he was raised to become.

“I’m not… worthy. I can’t do it, Izaya.” Kadota looked up at his lord, pleading him.

“You can. And you will. Because I command it.” Izaya replied simply but with the firm voice of a ruler. “And you’ll obey if you still consider yourself my subject.”

“That’s cruel, you know I won’t disobey you.” Kadota sighed as he finally got up, not enjoying the fact that Izaya had just challenged his devotion of over a hundred years. But he finally understood why Izaya had been so unconcerned with the politics of the Dollars. 

“You’re planning to leave.” 

Izaya nodded in reply, not denying it. He looked as if he was going to say more but stopped himself. Kadota caught that and realized, it was something Izaya probably didn’t want to say in front of Shizuo. He wasn’t quite certain if he was supposed to catch that or not but it seemed the vampire hunter didn’t know of Izaya’s quirks to notice the half-breath that Izaya took before he bit his cheek. 

...So there was more than meets the eye. If only Kadota could have a moment alone with Izaya, he would try to get more hints about what it was that Izaya couldn’t say in front of Shizuo but for now, it would do. 

It had to do with leaving. Something about it that Izaya couldn’t say in front of this vampire hunter but wanted to say it to him. That was good enough. 

Kadota took his leave.

  
  


* * *

 

 

Shizuo was completely befuddled by the entire conversation that took place between the two. There was so much to take in. The fact that they both thought that it was totally common sense that the leader of all the vampires, Mikado, would want him somehow. And that Izaya truly was a ranking lord, his commanding presence in front of Kadota was a side of Izaya he had never seen before. And the plan? To save the Orihara clan? And somehow Izaya was planning to leave?

Well, that part Shizuo understood. It was because of the contract probably. Because Izaya was bound to him now and had to follow whatever order Shizuo told him to do so he couldn’t stay as the leader of the clan. He felt guilty about that. About a lot of things, such as stealing Izaya away from his natural place in the vampire world. 

He watched as Izaya slumped back to the couch once Kadota took his leave. He looked tired, the calm and composed facade gone instantly. Shizuo wanted to console him but he couldn’t. He was the cause of all this and yet he couldn’t let Izaya ‘go.’ Even if Shizuo knew how to break the contract, he knew the church would not accept it if Shizuo told them he freed their most valuable asset to this war. 

War. They were in the middle of many wars. Wars with different facets and sides. War with vampires and men. War amongst the vampire clans. War inside the Dollars. There were so many complicated politics going on, Shizuo almost wished he could just somehow end it all with a punch. Or take Izaya with him and live in some quiet forest, far far away from everyone if the world of men and vampires loved their war so much.

As much as Shizuo almost wanted to do that, he knew he couldn’t. Besides…

“So. You have sisters?” Shizuo asked quietly, breaking the silence.

“Yeah…” Izaya replied, his voice sounding very tired. He massaged his temples with his forefinger and thumb.

“More than one? I think I heard him use plural...”

“Twins actually.” Izaya looked across and finally faced Shizuo with a faint smile.

“How would that work? Isn’t there supposed to be only one ruler?”

“Well they’ll probably rule jointly. Actually, they would like doing that, knowing them.”   
  
Shizuo remembered Izaya laughing at him during their first mission together. That one time that Shizuo was worried that they might have killed one of Izaya’s family members. 

" _Pfff, no worries. My mother’s already dead.” Izaya giggled. “And my father too. So no worries there._ ”

But Izaya had not mentioned anything about his sisters then, Shizuo realized now. Izaya had purposefully said those words that made Shizuo angry and forced him to change the subject so he wouldn’t even consider that Izaya might have other family members. 

Shizuo regarded this quietly as he watched Izaya stand up groggily, his wings drooping. His shoulders looked heavy with an invisible burden, Shizuo almost wanted to reach out and give him a massage. 

Especially after last night. 

Shizuo had panicked once he realized Izaya was crying. He still didn’t quite understand what had caused it, even worse, he feared that he himself had triggered something. No, he was almost certain he had triggered it. Somehow. Possibly a painful memory? Shinra had mentioned that Izaya could be hiding a lot of scars from the torture. Shizuo just wasn’t sure exactly what that scar was if that was the case. 

Or maybe it was happy tears? That felt too good to be true. 

Shizuo couldn’t sleep well that night as he held the vampire. Izaya on the other hand, once he stopped crying fell asleep rather easily. Kadota had mentioned that Izaya had nightmares but not once did Shizuo see Izaya’s face contort in terror. He remembered holding him close and softly petting his head for hours until he too finally fell asleep. 

The morning after, Shizuo woke up to Izaya already getting dressed. He watched as Izaya stood in front of several large mirrors, using magic to move the strings through the eyelets that tied the back of vest and around his wings in such an intricate manner. The strings themselves made a criss-cross design like art around the back. Vampires really liked ornate things with unnecessary complexity, it seemed.

“Did you… sleep okay?” Shizuo asked quietly then, wondering if Izaya had a nightmare after all in the morning.

“Y-yeah.” Izaya avoided his gaze as he finished fixing the front of his coat. “Although it would have been better if you didn’t have to light that disgusting tobacco.” Shizuo could hear the pout on Izaya’s lips even when his face was turned away.

Ah, so he was embarrassed about last night. That was adorable. Shizuo smiled as he sat up and reached out, grabbing Izaya by the waist, twisting him to face him and pulled him close. Izaya used the opportunity to finish tying up all the loose laces on Shizuo’s shirt. The blond loved the soft touches of Izaya’s hands that started to lace his strings, helping him dress in this nonsensical vampire outfit. 

“Then you need breakfast before you leave this chamber.” Shizuo reminded him as he buried his face in Izaya’s chest like a pillow. It felt good. Izaya’s scent. Izaya’s body. The caress of those long fingers that softly touched him. The way Izaya’s waist curved and fit around his hands when he held him. Everything felt perfect. 

Except he knew, somewhere, deep inside… Izaya was hurting. 

And the only thing he could provide was his own blood. 

“S-Shizu… we shouldn’t, they’ll be here soon.”   
  
When Izaya flushed like that, it strangely made Shizuo’s heart pound. He didn’t even know why but he wanted to pull him down and kiss him. Keep him safe, take him far away from here and back to the wooden cabin he made for them. Or perhaps not even in the church grounds, just somewhere far, far away with just the two of them. 

“It’ll be quick. Besides, since when do you not want to drink my blood?” Shizuo teased, grabbing Izaya’s hand to pause him from fixing the ties. His other free hand was quick with his knife as he cut his own tongue so he could kiss Izaya once more. 

He knew it was cheating because Shizuo could see already Izaya’s eyes dilate as the scent of blood hit the air briefly before the hunter closed his mouth. Izaya was already leaning forward, hungry. Despite his shyness, he couldn’t help the hunger. Still, playing fair or not, Shizuo wanted to provide for Izaya. The vampire had been hungry for too many years. 

Their kiss was just as sweet. Izaya’s lips were supple and his tongue so pliable. Shizuo couldn’t help but push his own tongue into that hot mouth, their heated breath intoxicating. 

It was in the midst of enjoying each other’s kisses when the bell rang, signaling that the maids were here, followed by the knock on the door moments later.

“S-Shizu-chan, we can’t… nngh… They’re waiting, we need to...”

“Just a bit more….”

Shizuo groaned inwardly as he remembered this morning, not even a few hours ago. It was just getting to the good part when Kadota had interrupted them. And now the mood was completely ruined. 

The blond watched as Izaya started to untangle the front lace of his shirt to change into the ball gown provided to him. 

“You shouldn’t go.” Shizuo chided. He didn’t like the fact that Izaya was walking into a trap. 

“Weren’t you listening?” Izaya sighed as he untied a lace and let it fall to the floor.

“Is there really no other way?” Shizuo sighed as he leaned his chin on one of the armrests of the sofa and watched Izaya undress in front of him. Izaya’s body was so thin but well proportioned. Shizuo was once again reminded how perfectly that body fit next to his when the blond hugged him last night. 

“If you want to find out what the trap is, you have to trigger it. I don’t plan to walk in there like some sacrificial lamb, mind you. But we still need to-”

“Izaya!” Shizuo gasped, interrupting him when Izaya took off his shirt. There was a huge bruise on his hips in the shape of a hand print, specifically about Shizuo’s size. 

“Yeah?” Izaya turned around, confused by Shizuo’s loud outburst. Then he looked down as he followed Shizuo’s gaze. “Oh those. I had forgotten about it.” And automatically, Izaya healed himself.

“Forgotten about it?! What the hell! If I hurt you, say something!” Shizuo quickly got up to inspect it but the bruise was already gone, as if it was never there before. “When was it? Sometime last night?” Shizuo searched his memory but he couldn’t really remember…. wait, no. There was one time he thought Izaya had flinched. When Shizuo was trying to hold back his orgasm while Izaya was on top of him…

_“Your blood… must taste really exquisite right now…”_

Shizuo flushed hard at the imagery he remembered, especially the drag of Izaya’s tongue on his neck. Shit, Izaya was so sexy last night. He hated himself for getting aroused at the thought even after hurting this man.  

“It’s alright. I’m used to the pain after, it’s nothing really.” Izaya shrugged.

“No, it’s not alright, goddammit!” Shizuo cursed, more angry at himself than anything. He took a shaky deep breath, trying to control his anger. He knew better than to direct his anger at Izaya. “Don’t… okay. Next time, tell me if I’m hurting you so I can stop.” 

“It’s really not-”

“No buts! I don’t care!! Stop me if I ever hurt you again. I mean it Izaya.” Shizuo’s eyes remained stern.

“Is that a command?” Izaya remained calm as he faced him, the question; a challenge.

Shizuo remembered the commands he had given Izaya when they renewed their contract under the holy tree. Protection from any danger. Protection from all vampires and hunters and Izaya included. 

“Yeah.” Shizuo knew by now how faithfully Izaya had been obedient, even to his own detriment. “I command you to stop me if I ever hurt you again.”

“....Alright.” Izaya lowered his gaze. Shizuo couldn’t see Izaya’s expression behind those long lashes. Wishing to see it, Shizuo raised Izaya’s chin upward with his hand. Izaya’s ruby eyes were so beautiful as he faced him again, their eyes searching each other. Questioning. 

The moment stilled. Just the two of them, alone with flickering candles and the moon their only witness. Shizuo leaned in. 

Izaya didn’t resist as their lips pressed together. It wasn’t feeding time. And the hunter wasn’t trying to shut Izaya up from speaking. There was no excuse for Shizuo’s lips to be kissing Izaya’s. But they parted to taste each other’s, the sensation tingling and dizzying. Their breaths grew shaky when they parted only to meet once more, uncertain if they should continue or stop. 

When Izaya didn’t tell him to stop for the first time, Shizuo decided to take the initiative, not wanting to lose this moment. His hands carefully slid down the nude torso, half afraid to touch him again after bruising him but at the same time, wanting to make certain that this time, he wouldn’t hurt him. Shizuo hovered above Izaya’s hip, fingers barely touching the skin as he leaned his face forward for more soft kisses he couldn’t get enough of. It tugged on his heartstrings as he heard a faint moan from Izaya. He wanted desperately for Izaya to want this as much as he wanted it. For Izaya to kiss him back willingly and without hesitation. Despite their past and despite the fact that it should be a condemnable act for a man to kiss a vampire or to kiss the murderer of his own parents, Shizuo wished that for once, they lived in a world where nothing held them back from what they were currently feeling. 

“Izaya…” Shizuo whispered his name and felt a small tremor coming from the smaller frame against his. “Izaya…” He called his name again as their lips connected once more. His reply was a silent shudder, the lips trembling against his as he didn’t deny him. Just a total and willing submission. 

It hurt Shizuo to hold back, his entire body and soul screaming at him to just take him now. 

Shizuo finally placed his hands firmly around Izaya’s waist and hugged him, burying his face into the crook of the vampire’s neck. He shuddered hard as he forced himself to calm down. At this rate, he would lose all his virtue. 

“We should get ready,” Izaya said quietly after a while, his hand soothingly stroking the blond’s hair.

Shizuo nodded in silence, still unwilling to let the vampire go, wanting the moment to last forever.

But nothing last forever. 

  
  
  


 

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author’s note: Hello! Huge thanks to kaede and voissane for putting up with me screaming about my writer’s block. Thanks to them, I was able to write this chapter a bit faster sob.  For those who had forgotten, “Pfff, no worries. My mother’s already dead.” Izaya giggled. “And my father too. So no worries there.” is in Chapter 7! And huge thanks to my beta, Sollertis! And I quote from my beta, "I was wondering when you'd do it and give us the whole Ruka special lmao. When is this going to go to hell." I laugh how my beta knows my writing style so well, she can already predict it pff... (which means, good luck you guys for the next 5 chapters of suffering <.<.;;;;; ) Enjoy this last bit of frosting on the cake before I throw it out the window and let Izaya stomp on it like a cellphone~
> 
> I hope the next chapter will come out just as fast ;___; Thank you for reading and reviewing!!!


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